Obama Care Sparks Second Wave of Ammo Shortages: Patients Told to Bite the Bullet

“Every medical student learns an old adage: You can skimp on some medicine, but you can't skimp on obstetrics or anesthesiology. An elderly surgeon explained it to me this way, ‘In surgery, people die in days and weeks—a doctor has time to fix a mistake. But in obstetrics and anesthesiology, they die in minutes and seconds.’" – Dr. Ronald Dworkin

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Among the myriad of deplorable misanthropic schemes under Obama Care, which should properly be called Obama-Soros care, one of the most afflictive is the administration’s dedication to cost cutting by way of reducing such frivolous frills as anesthesia. “Incredibly, Congress's proposed healthcare reform plan risks skimping on anesthesia. According to one of the health-care bills in Congress, H.R. 3200, the public option would reduce reimbursement for anesthesia by over 50%.” Liberals, who fancy themselves the sole arbiters of compassion, have no compunction about cutting corners on superfluous amenities like an anesthetic during surgery, according to anesthesiologist Ronald Dworkin writing for the Wall Street Journal. Dworkin states, “In no medical specialty is the spread between the Medicare rates and private insurance rates greater. Progressives expect to pay anesthesiologists Medicare rates, which are 65% less than private insurance rates, without any change in the system. But there will be changes.” Dworkin predicts an inevitable decline in quality of care under Obama-Soros and it will be felt first in obstetrics. At Dworkin’s hospital, a woman in labor need wait no more than five minutes for an epidural due to the hospital’s capacity to maintain adequate staffing twenty-four hours a day. “The economic crunch will eventually force these hospitals to cover obstetrics ‘when anesthesiology is available,’ meaning in between regular operating room cases,” he says. Bad news for pregnant women and babies: “During an obstetrical emergency, these short-staffed anesthesia departments will scramble to send someone to perform the C-section. Don't forget—a baby has only nine minutes of oxygen when the umbilical cord prolapses, so time is of the essence.“ Analyzing Obama’s position on late-term abortion and unwillingness to administer care to babies born alive after botched abortions, it’s easy to assume that perhaps he regards the obstetric anesthesia rationing as a perk. Having just gone through a minor elective procedure myself, I have become acutely aware of the value of a skilled anesthesiologist. Thanks to accelerated advances in research and technology, anesthesia now can be exceptionally individualized to suit the patient’s physical and psychological condition. I am a wretched coward about anesthesia. My outstanding doctor and equally gifted anesthesiologist made the entire process as quiescent as possible. Anesthesiology now allows for a wide range of alternatives available to the physician to effect the most desirable outcome for the patient. Dworkin warns that anesthesiologists will naturally leave the field. They are already shackled by the incessant menace of the John Edwards genre of lawsuits. Their work is becoming more onerous as torpid Americans grow more overweight, exacerbating the hazards further: “This complicates anesthesia tremendously. Putting in IVs, spinals and epidurals is harder. Inserting breathing tubes is much more dangerous.” We are cautioned that liberals fail recognize the authentic brilliance of the American health care system: “It unites rich and poor in a common private insurance system.” Here is how it works:

“When a rich person rolls into the operating room, the nurse asks him: ’Would you like a warm blanket? How about a pillow?’ The anesthesiologist numbs his skin before putting in the I.V. Every effort is made to make him happy. “ People in the operating room pay attention to a rich patient's wishes because they know a rich person can make their lives miserable. He can complain to the hospital president, or call the mayor. But the side effect is that their high quality care becomes habitual, and all patients receive it. When a poor person complains in most environments, no one listens. But in healthcare, through a common private insurance system, poor people go to the same hospitals and doctors as rich people and thus enjoy the benefit of rich people's power. The public option severs this link. Dissatisfied with government-run healthcare, the rich will exit the system. The poor and middle-class will be left to flounder alone inside the public system. Government-run healthcare will become like the public schools.“

In the days of yore, before contemporary anesthetics were developed, soldiers wounded in battle were given bullets to bite to help them endure the pain. In all likelihood, a shot of whiskey was oftentimes prescribed. “First recorded in print in Kipling's Light that Failed, 1891. Kilpling uses 'bite the bullet' rather than 'bite this bullet', which we might have expected if the idea were new to the character being spoken to. That tends to suggest the phrase was already public when the story was written." - phrases.org.uk In anticipation of Obama-Soros care, prescient Americans will certainly be stocking up on whiskey as well as bullets, sparking yet another nationwide ammo shortage.

“...'Going to sleep by you. Lie down now; you'll be better in the morning.' 'I shan't!' The voice rose to a wail. 'My God! I'm blind! I'm blind, and the darkness will never go away.' He made as if to leap from the bed, but Torpenhow's arms were round him, and Torpenhow's chin was on his shoulder, and his breath was squeezed out of him. He could only gasp, 'Blind!' and wriggle feebly. 'Steady, Dickie, steady!' said the deep voice in his ear, and the grip tightened. 'Bite on the bullet, old man, and don't let them think you're afraid,'“ -phrases.org.uk