Sarah Palin doesn't care. Why should she? A few weeks ago she abruptly announced she was quitting the governorship of Alaska because, as she explained in a rambling, incoherent exit speech, gosh darn it, she's got to save those Alaskans who elected her from herself. Before heading south, she proved what a compassionate conservative she was in her final days in office. Simply put, old, sick, and disabled people are dying in her state, a result of her time in office. She could have stopped it. She didn't.
It seems federal auditors were forced to suspend new entries into the state Medicaid program because of gross mismanagement by Alaska officials operating under Sarah Palin. As a result, thousands of elderly and disabled people are without care, and hundreds are dying for lack of treatment. According to the Anchorage Daily News, in the last two years, 227 adults already getting services died while waiting for a nurse to reassess their needs. Another 27 died waiting for the initial assessment that would determine if they qualified for help.
Alaskan senator Mark Begich wanted to lift the moratorium, which -- in addition to providing life-saving medical care -- would also preventlow-income elderly or disabled persons from being forced to sell their homes and enter nursing homes. Seems simple enough, right? Begich has asked Palin to lift the ban in a June letter urgingthe now ex-governorto solve the crisis quickly. According to the Alaska Daily News:
"It appears there are legitimate questions on both sides -- about the state's administration of the program and what may be an overly forceful reaction by CMS," Begich wrote to Palin. CMS stands for the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. He encouraged Palin to offer "the full services of your executive branch" and asked her to pass his letter on to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, who will be taking over as governor.
In an emailed reply, Palin stated that "there needs to be strict oversight of all public monies spent on all government services." Then she packed up and left. In other words -- if you're old, sick, and/or disabled in Alaska, and I'm the Conservative governor, no soup for you. They're lucky she didn't set them adrift on an ice floe on her way outta town. Guess she had better things to do in her final days than do her job ina way that would have saved the lives of her most needy and helpless constituents. Maybe she went wolf hunting from her state-funded helicopter, as she is much more adroit at making things dead than keeping them alive.
So, thenext time you hear Sarah whine about Obama's "death plan," which she absurdly alleges will force old people to appear before apanel of government officials and either prove they're worthy of living or be euthanized, remember the hundreds of elderly Alaskans shecondemned to death for lack of concern and competence.
The programs were in place to rescue people in desperate need of help. Palin chose her own career plansover the needs of Alaskans.As in most other aspects of her political career, she failed.This time, people died.She didn't leave office in time to save them.
