Paul Ryan: Republican, Vice Presidential Nominee, Caregiver?

So what did he actually "learn"? This would have been the perfect time to bring up the devasting cost and burden of long-term care for individuals and society, as well as the building tsunami of Alzheimer's Disease. Instead, we hear lip-service. Nothing.

agiltees, THANK YOU, nothing else needs to be said...

agilitees, indeed. This "article" (I use the term loosely) is a waste of bandwidth. AC should be ashamed of themselves for this useless drivel.

I liked Paul Ryan from the moment I saw him, and I think he would be a great vice-president!

This article is baiting a political discussion. SHAME ON YOU.

Actions speak louder than words. President Obama has proven that he has empathy and he is concerned about families and every day people. He did not have to stick his political neck out trying to get health insurance coverage for all. He fought for equal pay for women because he knew his grandmother who cared for him did not earn equal pay. The other side has hampered the President's efforts to getting this country back on economic track b/c all they were thinking about was how to get this guy out of office next term. That snide remark by Romney the other day about how no one asked to see his birth certificate shows his true nature. Or his stupidity to bring up that divisive topic again. Neither of which makes for a great presidential character. Please tell me, anyone, since he was elected as a representative in 1998, what legislation has Ryan worked to pass that would help families or caregivers?

I am now discontinuing this newsletter because you have essentially endorsed the Republican Party. It doesn't even matter whether I am Republican or Democrat. This article is political hogwash. Good-bye!

abadaba, don't look at it that way, look at it as I do as an opportunity to get my mind off of caregiving tasks (since I can't leave the house) and challenge your mind to offer a rebuttal. For example, the R ticket wants to cut Medicaid funding and turn Medicaid decisions re funding etc over to the states. Now this might be fine if you have a mother and a grandson who can stay at home and take care of grandma with Alz or a child with a disability or if you have Alz or a disability you have family to care for you forever, but if you don't then how does Ryan explain who will care for them? I read an interesting article that might interest caregivers of elderly or disabled who are now or someday might need to be on Medicaid. it said (and I welcome any challenges to this information):

There's another Paul Ryan plan for health care, a fundamental change in caring for the poor and disabled that would affect many more people than the Medicare overhaul the GOP vice presidential candidate is best known for.

Under the Wisconsin congressman's Medicaid plan, states would take over the program. At the same time, Ryan's budget would reduce projected federal spending on Medicaid by about $800 billion over 10 years, dramatically shrinking it as a share of the national economy.

Medicaid serves about 60 million people, roughly 10 million more than Medicare. It's a diverse population brought together by need. Most Medicaid recipients are low-income children and their mothers, but the costliest cases are severely disabled people, many of them seniors in nursing homes.

Ryan would also repeal President Barack Obama's health care law, expected to add at least 11 million more people to Medicaid.

Ryan's Medicaid plan is in sync with his new boss, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

"Gov. Romney ... believes that states are far better positioned to design programs that effectively serve those in need," said campaign spokeswoman Andrea Saul.

But no matter who runs Medicaid, such cuts would result in millions of vulnerable people losing health insurance, according to advocates for the poor and some nonpartisan economic analysts.

"Medicaid is already a very lean program," said Edwin Park of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, which advocates for low-income people. "It is not a program where you can magically glean huge efficiencies by just devolving it to the states. The only way to compensate for funding reductions of this magnitude would be to institute deep, damaging cuts to beneficiaries and the health care providers who serve them."

ps the this article i cited from if you want to read it all was
The other Paul Ryan plan: $800B in Medicaid cuts

States would take over program

Updated: Wednesday, 15 Aug 2012, 3:46 PM CDT
Published : Wednesday, 15 Aug 2012, 3:46 PM CDT
RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR

WASHINGTON (AP) -

Touchy, touchy. How sad. Both political parties have DIFFERENT ideas on how to handle medicare. Just as we, as caregivers, have DIFFERENT ideas on how to handle our elderly parents. No one attacks me just because I care for my father differently than YOU DO. Stop acting just like the politicians who attack each other---