Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Patent Law Blogs -> IPBiz

Patent Law

: IPBiz

"This is not entirely untrue"

By Lawrence B. Ebert, Esq.

Text from the Time/news.yahoo article titled The AARP and Seniors: Clashing Views on Health Reform:

Judging by comments at town-hall meetings, the elderly are also fearful that Democratic proposals would take funding away from Medicare to pay for coverage for Americans who don't currently have health insurance. This is not entirely untrue; Democratic proposals call for spending money to help insure the uninsured, alongside targeted reductions in Medicare reimbursements to doctors and hospitals and major funding cuts to Medicare Advantage, which allows seniors to buy private insurance with federal dollars. Most health-policy experts, however, believe these cuts are necessary for the program to remain financially solvent.

The AARP took an anti-patentee position in KSR v. Teleflex [ IBM and AARP on KSR v. Teleflex ] and the AARP sided with "big pharma" in Merck v. Integra
[ Interesting take on Merck v. Integra ].

It appears that some "older people" don't feel the AARP is on the side of "older people" on health reform. The AARP has not been on the side of smaller inventors in patent reform.

Returning to health care, PolitiFact says:

He's [Obama] right that the bill does not directly trim Medicare benefits; instead, the government is proposing ways to slow or eliminate some Medicare spending to beef up other aspects of the plan. But experts told us it's conceivable or even likely that those financial changes could lead to reduced benefits, particularly for people in the Advantage program. From that perspective, it's a stretch for Obama say that Medicare patients won't see changes in their plans as a result. We give Obama a Half True.

IPBiz asks: is a "Half True" related to "not entirely untrue"?

Full post as published by IPBiz on September 01, 2009 (boomark / email).