Ow.

I finally finished reading all 1,018 pages of the recent healthcare reform legislation. My brain is killing me. But what's killing me more is the misinformation being spread by people who have no idea what the hell they're talking about.

"Death panels?" Seriously? "Euthanize the elderly?" How do you get that out of "provide vehicles to allow seniors to let their providers know what type of care they would like to receive?" Strangely enough, I got something closer to, "medical powers of attorney." It's like a twisted, ugly game of telephone.

Anyway, in case you care, after reading the bill from the objective of a beneficiary advocate and as someone who has actually implemented a privatized government healthcare program (focusing on the Medicare portion, of course, because that's what I do), the whole thing seems pretty sound. Yes, there are some portions of it that may be difficult or in some cases nearly impossible to implement, at least in my experience with the government-run healthcare and entitlement programs (Medicare plan sponsors, supplemental legislation and SCHIP and Medicaid and Social Security Insurance and Social Security Disability Insurance). But at the same time, at least there's a framework to start from. Kind of like when you create a first draft of copy for a novel: you have to have somewhere to start from, provide someone something to rip apart, to get somewhere in the first place.

I am so tired, though. Another big part of my job is following the media, which makes me want to scream. This is lots, lots worse than when I had to read the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009 (you know, the gigantic bill that implemented Cash for Clunkers, new COBRA extensions, extra Medicare protections and payment provisions and energy assistance). People are freaking nuts. This whole healthcare debate has significantly diminshed my faith in politicians to distribute even remotely accurate information and others' ability to distinguish truth from lies. Or to even care where that line is.