...Two days after his State of the Union speech, Bush was at St. Luke's East Hospital looking for a political tonic in health care reform, a topic that has re-emerged as one of the nation's hottest domestic priorities....
...First stop on the tour was the emergency room. Looking up, he viewed a flat-screen television monitor filled with bright, blinking lights that displayed the vital signs of patients: blood pressure, heart rate, what kinds of tests have been done on which patient, and their medication.
``Medicine is finally catching up with the rest of America in terms of information technology,'' Bush could be heard telling assembled doctors and nurses at one point.
Escorted by George Pagels, the hospital's chief executive officer, and James Hart, director of emergency services, Bush later visited an intensive-care room featuring a sophisticated, high-resolution camera that allows doctors even in remote locations to keep close watch on patients.
Bush, who donned reading glasses to check out the high-definition picture on a nearby computer screen, noted that doctors can check on patients even through their home computers.
``Pretty fantastic, isn't it,'' he said.....
Imagine you are in the emergency room with a family member fighting for his/her life. The very last thing you want to hear or talk about would be tax breaks and health care reform.
The President's agenda, as presented in the State of the Union speech, is totally worthless. There should be only one thing on his "TO DO LIST" ------ end the war in Iraq. President Bush is like the school kid who keeps delaying doing his homework. It is time to get serious about ending the war. The President needs to do his homework, no matter how painful he thinks it is.