Bush official loses legal ruling on Medicare Drug Bill Cost Scandal

[Bernardo de La Paz]

Bush administration official Scully lost a legal ruling today, reported on NPR.

This was the $130 billion cost overage above the $400 billion cost for the Medicare Prescription drug plan that the few seniors want. The cost overage was hidden from Congress when Scully ordered an underling to hide it.

This is not the report, but is a link to information about the overage and the scandal hiding it:

http://www.independent-media.tv/item.cfm?fmedia_id=8852&fcategory_desc=Under%20Reported

[Cocoa]

1. that would be FORMER Bush administration official

after the Medicare bill passed, and after Scully got a waiver from ethics rules, Scully left government and took a high-paying job in the drug industry...

[cthrumatrix]

2. shocking...say it ain't so

[UpInArms]

3. Revolving-Door Bingo

http://slate.msn.com/id/2091986/

Thomas Scully is administrator of the Medicare and Medicaid programs. In the Dec. 3 New York Times, Robert Pear reported that Scully, who was the Bush administration's point man on the recently passed Medicare prescription-drug bill, was at the same time discussing job offers from various interested parties. Scully told the Times that his multitasking complied with governmentwide ethics regulations for departing officials. Sad to say, he's probably right. Here's what it says in "Understanding the Revolving Door," a pamphlet put out by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics:

Under a criminal law on conflict of interest (18 U.S.C. § 208), generally you cannot work in your Government job on a matter that would affect the financial interest of someone with whom you are discussing possible employment. The Standards of Ethical Conduct for Executive Branch Employees (5 C.F.R. part 2635) have a similar rule that applies even before employment discussions begin, and may apply even when you have just sent a resume.

Sounds tough, doesn't it? But the law on conflict of interest is extremely porous (at least in practice), and the regulatory prohibition described above may be ignored simply by acquiring a government-issued waiver, as Scully did.

Acting on what was either an admirable spirit of openness or a canny desire to intensify the bidding war, Scully named for the Times the three law firms and two private investment firms that have extended job offers. All of them represent companies affected by the Medicare bill, and one of them—the law firm Ropes & Gray—represents the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and several individual drug companies. In light of the Medicare bill's stipulation that the federal government may not negotiate volume drug discounts, Chatterbox suspects that Ropes & Gray was the high bidder.

...more...

[Kadie]

4. GAO: Former Medicare chief should repay salary over threats to fire subord

GAO: Former Medicare chief should repay salary over threats to fire subordinate

MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press Writer
Tuesday, September 7, 2004


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



(09-07) 11:56 PDT WASHINGTON (AP) --

The former Medicare administrator should repay his government salary because of his efforts to keep higher estimates of the cost of a prescription drug plan from Congress last year, congressional investigators said Tuesday.

The recommendation from the Government Accountability Office reignited the controversy over the passage of the Medicare overhaul and questions about whether the Bush administration intentionally concealed its own estimates of the cost -- $100 billion more than the $400 billion it acknowledged -- to win support from conservative Republicans.

The Associated Press reported last year that Thomas Scully, the Medicare chief until December, threatened to fire chief Medicare actuary Richard Foster to prevent him from giving the information to lawmakers.

Federal law prohibits a federal agency from paying the salary of an official who prevents another federal employee from communicating with Congress, GAO said.


http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/09/07/national1456EDT0565.DTL

[radfringe]

5. speaking of drugs

this was told to me today by a co-worker. co-worker's friend was at a store, behind him a woman somewhere between late 60's early 70's of age was bitching about how much MORE her prescriptions were costing

the friend notice a bush*-cheney button on her pocketbook - so he told her that she might reconsinder who she is voting for

the woman tore into him and even threatened to flatten the tires on his car....

he pointed out that the drug costs didn't sky-rocket so much until bush* put in the fix for drug companies with the medicare reforms - and he also mentioned that her medicare premiums are going up

the woman looked like she was going to have a heart attack - spouted off some rhetoric from the bush-echo-chorus

some people just don't get it even when it's hitting them in the face

[snippy]

9. She "threatened to flatten the tires on his car?" How bizarre.

Is this a common response of republican women when confronted in the wild?

[CornField]

12. That's colloquial for "I'm going to bust your nuts."

;)

[w4rma]

13. Threats of violence when confronted with reality that to accept would

shatter their faith in the GOP.

[priller]

6. So what was the legal ruling?

I don't know what issue they were ruling on.

[Rose Siding]

7. A 100 billion dollar bilking for the price of a bureaucrat's salary

Good deal for the repubs :grr:

Investigators Say Ex-Medicare Chief Should Repay Salary

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The former Medicare administrator should repay his government salary because of his efforts to keep higher estimates of the cost of a prescription drug plan from Congress last year, congressional investigators said Tuesday.

The recommendation from the Government Accountability Office reignited the controversy over the passage of the Medicare overhaul and questions about whether the Bush administration intentionally concealed its own estimates of the cost -- $100 billion more than the $400 billion it acknowledged -- to win support from conservative Republicans.

The release of the report follows last week's announcement that Medicare premiums for non-hospital care will rise a record $11.60 a month next year, which administration officials said was partly attributable to provisions of the new law.

Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry linked the concealment and premium increase in an appeal to older voters. ``The Bush administration broke the law by covering up the true cost of their phony Medicare bill, and George W. Bush broke his promise to seniors in his convention speech when he told them Medicare was sound and then increased premiums by a record 17 percent the very next day,'' Kerry said.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/health/AP-Medicare-Costs.html?ex=1252296000&en=d633fd3e4aa94990&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland

[lovuian]

8. This is Blatant Corruption

Bush's Whitehouse is riddled with it

[LynnTheDem]

10. But wait a mo

Scully was ordered by bushCartel to NOT TELL Congress, or he'd be fired. "Scapegoat" Scully. If he's smart, he's got proof that he was threatened to keep quiet.

[von Staufenberg]

17. I don't think Scully was threatened

If I remember this particular scandal (and who can keep up?), Scully was the one doing the threatening. I believe the specifics were that Scully, a political appointee, threatened the actuary, a career civil servant, that he would be fired if he released the information. I coud be wrong, but I believe that was the purported chain of events.

[thecrow]

11. kick

I love it when this happens

[Mel]

14. had to search the archives for this

but thought it relevant I kept calling 'Bill Thomas' Thompson :eyes:
Thomas is in this mess he knew what the 'real numbers' where before he voted on the Medicare Prescription drug plan and he did NOT inform the other members of congress of what he had learned from Foster BEFORE that vote!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=443292



I say more than Scully is slung up in the back door dealings and stealing of tax payers money. One other thing let's not forget about Billy Tauzin he's involved in this dirty mess also.

http://consumeraffairs.com/news04/tauzin.html
Jan. 28, 2004
Public Citizen today called for an investigation into whether U.S. Rep. Billy Tauzin (R-La.), who had a key role in writing the Medicare prescription drug law, broke House ethics rules when negotiating a lucrative job with the drug industry's top lobbying group.


Tauzin has received an offer to represent the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the drug industry's main lobbying group, which was heavily involved in the crafting of recently passed legislation to create a prescription drug benefit under Medicare.


The legislation contains key provisions beneficial to the drug industry; it subsidizes private insurers to provide prescription drug coverage to seniors - thereby increasing demand for drugs, bars the Medicare administrator from bargaining for lower drug prices and effectively prohibits the reimportation of lower-priced drugs from Canada.</snip>

[DeepModem Mom]

15. I wish we could mail a list of these unending scandals to every household

in America. Not only does the TV media scarcely cover them at all, but there are so many, and they come so fast, that things get lost in the shuffle.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

16. A short list of some of the Bush scandals.

* 2000 election vote count.
* 2001-08-06 Presidential Daily Briefing ignored.
* Ashcroft de-emphasizing counter-terrorism before 9/11.
* Blank seven minutes on 9/11.
* Patriot Act. Patriot Act 2.
* Bush to Clarke on 9/11: "Get Iraq".
* Faith based community grants.
* Faith based e-voting, voter intimidation, voter discrimination.
* Faith based rejection of Science: Global Warming, stem cells.
* Faith based missile defence.
* Faith based intelligence (manipulation of intelligence).
* Faith based peace (no planning for winning the peace in Iraq).
* Faith based contracts: Halliburton no-bids and overcharges in Iraq.
* Feith based invasions (Israeli spy: Pentagon: Douglas Feith, Chalabi).
* Destroying Valerie Plame's work and career.
* Abandoning Afghanistan to clobber Iraq on Bush's election timetable.
* Illegally moving $700 million out of Afghanistan Fund to seed Iraq War.
* Sending troops to Iraq without body armor.
* Planning to have Iraq pay for the post-war.
* Bush avoiding soldier funerals.
* Forbidding publishing returning coffins photos.
* Jettisoning long time allies.
* Abandonment of Palestinians to Sharon's mercies or lack thereof.
* Rumsfailed incompetence and the backdoor draft.
* Abu Ghraib and Whitehouse torture memos and policies.
* Secret detentions.
* Failing to secure humankind's heritage in Bhagdad museum.
* Blowing cover of MNN Khan double agent in Aug. 2004
* Politicizing terror alerts.
* Cutting and hindering port and container security.
* Mandating schools give student names, addresses to military recruiters.
* Removing asset forfeiture law pamphlets from libraries.
* Proclaiming "No child left behind" and cutting funding.
* Cutting vet benefits and vet hospitals.
* Tax cuts for the rich.
* Passing spending cuts down, squeezing states and local government.
* Reversing huge surplus to huge deficit burdening our children.
* Stuffing Strategic Petroleum Reserve at highest prices.
* Enron. Kenneth Lay who?
* Massive accounting irregularities under Bremer ($8.8 billion).
* 9/11 commission: avoidance, obstruction, conclusions.
* Lowered Environmental Standards: arsenic, mercury
* Closed door energy policy writing exclusively with energy companies.
* Supported military coup in Venezuela against elected Chavez.
* Lying about the cost of the Medicare drug bill.
* Plans to test all Americans for mental health.
* Stealing memos from Democratic Congresspeople 2002. (verification?)
* Riggs Bank (verification).
* Not so Swift Boat Vets. Smear McClain, Clelland, Jamie Gorelick, Kerry.
* Exploiting NY firefighters and Iraqi soccer team in political ads.
* Considering cancelling the 2004 election.
* Illegal use of Homeland Security to get Texas Democrats for redistricting.
* Recess appointments of ultra-right Judges Pryor and Pickering.
* Locking up Reagan and GHWB presidential papers.
* Bush has divided America after promising to unite it.

Did I mention Halliburton?

See also:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=2207558#2207600

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x2219763

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=686857#687137