Health Care

Re: Rush Limbaugh

By Karen Tumulty | March 9, 2010 | +

Interesting post, Joe.

Is it possible that Rush Limbaugh’s objection–after his recent positive experience in Hawaii, the only state with an employer mandate–is that Obama’s health care plan isn’t socialist enough?

Consider this statement from Rushbo:

I don’t know. I’ll just tell you this, if this passes and it’s five years from now and all that stuff gets implemented — I am leaving the country. I’ll go to Costa Rica.

And then, consider this:

Costa Rica Offers Good-Quality Health Care

Costa Rica has universal health care, one of the best health systems in Latin America. As always with nationalized health care, expect red tape and long waits, but the quality of Costa Rica’s health care is excellent. Private health care is also available, very affordable, and high quality. Many doctors speak English and have received training in Europe, Canada, or the U.S. There are three large, private hospitals that most expatriates use: CIMA hospital in Escazú, Clinica Biblica in San José, and Clinica Católica in San José-Guadalupe.
Statistics from the World Health Organization frequently place Costa Rica in the top country rankings in the world for long life expectancy, often even ahead of Great Britain and the United States, even though the per-capita income of Costa Ricans is about one-tenth that of the U.S. and the U.K. Arguably, one reason for this is the slower pace of living in Costa Rica. And, of course, the healthy, fresh, non-preservative-laden foods found there, and the welcoming tropical climate. Costa Rica just seems to be a healthy place to live.

Costa Rica’s Government-Run Health Care System

With a government-sponsored network of more than 30 hospitals and more than 250 clinics throughout the country, the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) has primary responsibility for providing low-cost health care services to the Costa Rican populace. Although sometimes overburdened, this system has worked well for Costa Ricans for the past 60 or so years. Open not just to Costa Rican residents, the CCSS provides affordable medical service to any foreign resident or visitor. Foreigners living in Costa Rica can join the CCSS by paying a small monthly fee–based on income–or they can buy health insurance from the state monopoly Instituto de Seguro Nacional (INS), valid with over 200 affiliated doctors, hospitals, labs, and pharmacies in the private sector.

Related Topics: Rush Limbaugh, socialist, Health Care

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  • charlieromeobravo

    This is getting more ridiculous by the day. Didn’t Palin just admit yesterday that her family used to cross the border to Canada to get medical care? These “leading lights” of the conservative, anti-HCR movement aren’t even trying anymore.

  • kevin

    What, he doesn’t like the Dominican Republic anymore?
    .
    Or is that just his choice for the Viagra vacations?

  • allthingsinaname

    Boy you guys at Swampland are on a roll today.

  • diecash1

    Nobody ever accused ol’ Rushbo the clown of being particularly bright. Sen. Al Franken nailed this one long ago.

  • nflfoghorn

    And she tells folks to talk to the hand…literally.

  • stuartzechman

    I don’t want Costa Rica’s system, just Germany’s or France’s or Japan’s.

  • shepherdwong

    Beggars shouldn’t be choosers.
    – signed, WellPoint and BlueCross

  • kevin

    P.S. With our new rate hikes, you’re all beggars now!

  • square1

    The truth is that if conservatives are looking for a model, they need look no further than Mexico: Low taxes on the wealthy, few regulations, and no meaningful social services to speak of.
    .
    Somehow I doubt that Republicans are going to start referring to Mexico as Galt’s Gulch 2.0.

  • stuartzechman

    KT:

    As always with nationalized health care, expect red tape and long waits, but the quality of Costa Rica’s health care is excellent.

    .
    Jesus, not this mythology again.
    .
    1) Nobody is arguing for a nationalized health care system, in which all doctors and medical staff are employed by the state. Canada doesn’t have a nationalized system, it’s single-payer (“Medicare-for-all”), and their system doesn’t produce the wait times of AMA myth (link to 2007 piece by Ezra Klein). Many of us aren’t even arguing for a single-payer system, since Japan (not a single-payer system) has even lower health care costs than single-payer Canada or nationalized Britain.
    .
    2) The sentence should read

    As always with unexpected medical problems whilst traveling in a medically overburdened, poor, third-world country whose primary resource is coffee beans, expect red tape and long waits…

  • newfreedomblog

    No need to argue with the great and powerful press, Mr Zechman. Soon under Obama you will be “living in a third world country with an overburdened healthcare system, and being paid with coffee beans”
    .

  • spob

    Hasn’t Time caught up with the spelling convention for Hawai’i?

  • mikew67

    It’s morally wrong to leave 100 million Americans un or underinsured, 1 illness away from financial ruin. It’s wrong to expect small business to absorb the outrageous insurance costs also — saw a cool site; Balkingpoints ; incredible satellite view of earth

  • bcinaz

    Guess Obamacare isn’t ‘single payer’ enough for ol’ Rushbo.

    Does he need a script for Vicodin?

  • spob

    Any true conservative has to be appalled by the individual mandate. And on an ideological basis, I am far more opposed to Obamacare now than single payer. I don’t listen to Rush, but I cannot imagine that he is more conservative than I am.
    .
    Why don’t they just make doctor’s bills non-dischargeable in bankruptcy like student loans?

  • artraveler

    And this accomplishes what? I guess if we kick them down and then down again, they will be stronger or is your policy the Republican plan-just die (so we can go after your estate which obviously wasn’t there or you could have paid your bills before).

  • tjoyce994

    How about Switzerland’s?

  • spob

    I wasn’t advocating it–just mentioning a way that the mandate could be accomplished through other means.

  • grape_crush

    Sing! (to the tune of Oklahoma!)

    Coooosta Rica, you can fly to St. Domingo by the plaaaane…
    And Oxycontin’s cheap, you can get it on the street
    When the shakes start happenin’ in your brain.

  • stuartzechman

    To my vast discredit, I have underestimated your brilliance, grape_crush.

  • towandavt

    News flash newfreedombloggeroo…the US is a third world nation WE HAVE NO SYSTEM OF HEALTH CARE LIKE ALL FIRST WORLD NATIONS DO! You need to get out more to get a grip on reality!

  • grape_crush

    Thanks, but you’ve seemed to have caught me on one of my more lucid or ludicrous or lewd days. Peace?

  • http://www.pledge-drive.com bondwooley

    Rush! Please move out of the country so that the rest of us can stop threatening to!

    Video Link: The Last Straw

    (satire)

  • http://bilbys.wordpress.com Bilby

    Of course one look at the transcript from the show itself, instead of the dishonest Thinkprogress post, would have made it clear Limbaugh said he would go to Costa Rica for medical treatment, not to live there permanently.

    CALLER: Hi, Rush. Hey, welcome from sunny Naples. Two part question for you regarding health care. If the health care bill passes, where would you go for health care yourself? And the second part of that is what happens to the doctors, do they have to participate in the federal program or can they opt out of it?

    RUSH: Well, in the first place, none of that’s going to happen for four or five years.

    CALLER: I understand that, but if it does, what happens to the doctors? Are they going to be forced into a federal program?

    RUSH: Yes! It’s going to be the only people providing insurance.

    CALLER: Where, then, would you go for health care?

    RUSH: Where would I go for health care?

    CALLER: Yeah, if the private doctors have to go into the federal program.

    RUSH: My guess is even in Canada and even in the UK, doctors have opted out. They can’t see anybody, Medicare, Medicaid, or what will become the exchanges. They have to have a clientele of private patients that will pay them a retainer, and it’s going to be a very small practice. I don’t know if that has been outlawed in the Senate bill.

    CALLER: Okay.

    RUSH: I don’t know. I’ll just tell you this. If this passes and it’s five years from now and all that stuff gets implemented, I am leaving the country. I’ll go to Costa Rica.

    It’s clear from that exchange what he meant, but I suppose it’s more fun to help spread the falsehood.

    Also, the link you gave about health care in Costa Rica is outdated. Check this out:

    Private Insurance

    Note: Before the 2008 ratification of CAFTA (the Central American Free Trade Agreement), Costa Rica operated under a government-owned monopoly insurance system. In 2009, international insurance providers began to offer health insurance within Costa Rica.

    Costa Rica’s private hospitals and clinics offer high-quality medical care at a tiny fraction of its U.S. equivalent cost. In fact, due to Costa Rica’s beautiful surroundings, medical reputation and very lost costs, the country is rapidly becoming a prime destination for medical tourism.

    Read the transcript provided above would have given you all the context you needed as to why he mentioned Costa Rica in the first place.

  • ohiolib

    Do you promise Rush? Promise?

  • sacredh

    If Rush leaves the country and goes to Costa Rica, will it be just for sex with an underage prostitute to recharge his batteries or is he thinking of living there because he hates America so much?

  • realitysetsin

    What Rush actually DID say is:

    “If this passes and it’s five years from now and all that stuff gets implemented, I am leaving the country. I’ll go to Costa Rica.”

    It is astounding how many ardent supporters (and even Rush himself) continue to insist “I did not say I’m going to Costa Rica” (extracted from his own website).

    Actually Rush, that’s exactly what you DID say – “I’ll go to Costa Rica”. It’s completely unambiguous as is the “context”.

    Rush shot off his mouth to make a point. He was called out for it, and is once again insulting us with his excuses.

    Additional comments made by Rush to explain his plan to travel to Costa Rica for “health care” (also extracted directly from his website):

    “They are establishing health care clinics with quality doctors in places like Costa Rica”

    Rush! Why are “quality doctors” going to Costa Rica if the country has socialized health care? I thought socialized health care would drive away all the quality doctors?

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