- A major expansion of Medicaid coverage—fully federally funded—for millions of low-income working families who currently fall through the cracks
- A regulated marketplace that clamps down on insurance company abuses so people can no longer be denied coverage
- Requirements that insurance companies spend more of the premium dollars they collecton patient care
- Sliding-scale subsidies so middle-class, working families can afford the coverage they need to keep their families healthy
- A strong public plan option that will provide choice, stability, and an honest yardstick to keep costs down
- Limits on out-of-pocket spending, giving Americans real health security and peace of mind
- Much-needed relief for small businesses so they can afford to offer coverage to their employees
- Improvements to Medicare that will help seniors and people with disabilities afford their drugs and their cost-sharing
- Better access to coverage for uninsured children so they can get the care they need
- Long overdue steps to modernize the system, improve the quality of care provided, and curb unnecessary spending so our American health care system delivers the best possible care
Any bill that reaches the president's desk will have at least 6-7 of these points and would be worth signing. Of all the points I think 6. is the one my side needs to emphasize more. All of us know to the core of our being that we are simply a health care emergency away from bankruptcy. Providing a maximum out-of-pocket safety net will help millions of fully insured Americans sleep better at night.
Providing insurance to the poor and children, protecting those (like me) with pre-existing conditions, and helping small businesses afford insurance would all be icing on the cake.
I'm sure the right will find a way to label this all as evil and they'll continue to make up shit like "death panels."
In some ways I'm happy to be leaving so I can view this debate from a rational perspective instead of tuning into Rush and Hannity as I drive around.
I don't understand why there is such a rush to push something through. As I understand it, a new plan won't take affect for a couple of years. Why not take some time and get it right?
ReplyDeleteOh.....could it have anything to do with the 2010 elections?
Boy you hit that right on the head, Dottie. The politicians are taking on a topic that deserves thoughtful, intelligent discussion and they're railroading it through so they can say "Mission Accomplished" next year. And we all know how well that phrase works, don't we?
ReplyDeleteWith all due respect, Steve, I think several of your points are vague enough that they encompass other points. What about limits on premiums for malpractice insurance? What about limits on the amount of rewards given for malpractice? What streamlining the system along the lines of what the Mayo Clinic does (a private entity) as opposed to the way that the government "streamlines" things (post office, Amtrak, etc)? I just think that with so much at stake, we need to slow down and take things in steps.
Just a thought. Perhaps the Obama administration should ask the providers of health-care for their input. Not the lip-service input that is currently being given to providers, but real input. Furthermore, it would be nice for the President and his staff to get their facts straight regarding health-care. Any plan currently proposed must be tempered in knowing that our President stated that surgeons get paid $50,000 to amputate a leg (actual reimbursement is $760 and that includes all hospital care and 90 days of postoperative care. Moreover, he claims pediatricians (non-surgeons) are removing children's tonsils to make more money. Fact...pediatricians don't do tonsillectomies, they don't do surgeries at all.
ReplyDeleteLastly, I agree with the previous posters, too much rides on this to be done in haste. It is not good for any country to spend what we spend on health care, however, the alternatives as currently explained are not the answer and rushing to slap something together that law-makers haven't even read, let alone considered and discussed seriously is absolutely crazy.
I have seen government health-care and participated in it in the VA system, I would venture to guess I am one of the few respondents who has. Everyday I was glad that my family was not dependent on that system to provide their health-care. Expanding a system like that to encompass national health-care would cover many on paper, but make actual access to care difficult or impossible.
Just another True Blue Iowans perspective.
Paul