Universal Health Care: This Time We Get It
During his campaign for President, Barack Obama promised to reform the way America delivers health care to its citizens. Then he outlined a health care program that included:
· Quality, Affordable & Portable Health Coverage for all
· Modernizing The U.S. Health Care System To Lower Costs & Improve Quality
· Promoting Prevention & Strengthening Public Health
As he begins his second month in office, Obama initiated a long-range plan to keep that campaign promise. Right now an estimated 46 million Americans are currently without health-care insurance and millions more have insurance that is inadequate for their needs.
Fifteen years ago (1993), the Clinton administration attempted to overhaul American health care and failed completely. Today, Obama’s people say it will be different. What’s different? Today, most Americans want the federal government to provide national health insurance. A CBS/New York Times poll found that 59% of Americans want a national health-care system, while 32% want it left to private enterprise. In addition, the stake holders who fought against the Clinton program 15 years ago are more open engaging in the conversation today. Finally, both Democrats and Republicans, while differing on the structure of a program, seem to want health-care reform. John McCain, in his presidential campaign, offered his version of a national health-care program.
One mistake the Clintons made was to come to Congress with a health-care plan written and more or less non-negotiable. Obama will do it in a different way. He recently hosted a health-care forum that included all interested parties. The purpose was to get ideas and to get Congress started toward enacting a comprehensive program. Obama will allow the program to come out of Congress rather than dictating the program to Congress.
It is time for us to do this. As the President said in opening his health-care forum: The lack of a comprehensive health-care program is…”one of the greatest threats not only to the well-being of our families and the prosperity of our businesses but to the very foundation of our economy.” However, he conceded that “Each of us must accept that none of us will get everything we want, and that no proposal for reform will be perfect.”
There are many special interests involve in this fight, and Americans are not certain what system makes the most sense to them, so the fight over this reform will be long and intense. All we can say is bring it on.
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Bob
Ask any Canadian if it works,
That is why they all come here and pay out of pocket.
What since does it make for a Doctor to spend that much time in school to be a gocernernment employee. Hogwash, as my Granddma used to say,
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Can you say say Socialized Medicine.
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That is why they all come here and pay out of pocket.
What since does it make for a Doctor to spend that much time in school to be a governmental employee. Hogwash, as my Grandma used to say.
I sure do hope that this can work. Although, as already posted other trials in this type medicine have already failed miserably.
Ask Australia if this will work, they are running out of money.
If your terminally ill they over look you.
They decide who will see a doctor and who won't..
It is not length of life, but depth of life.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
How a Man plays the game shows something of his character
How he loses shows all of it..
Hi Everyone Thanks for your Comments...
Folks, you've got to pay attention. We are not headed for a Canada style system. That is not even close to what Obama has in mind. Listen to his words. He said, if you have a health care insurance policy you like, you keep it. If not you can buy into any system you wish. You pick you own physician. You choose your the hospital you want (within the rules of the policy you buy).
What Obama wants to do is use leigislation to make sure policies must cover everyone, to help make the policies affordable for everyone, and to require insurers to cover people with preexisting conditions that they now often turn down.
This is not socialized medicine. It is not even close. In socialized medicine, the government owns the hospitals and clinics, government pays the physicians and nurses and manages the health care program. Obama does not want a system like this and we won't have a system like that.
It is fine to criticize the idea that Obama is trying to bring about, but heaven sake, criticize what he actually says he wants, not what you heard someone say he wants.
Bob, you've got to pay attention. This Country is moving faster toward Social Medicine than ever in the history of our Country.. You have been around well to long not to see it coming.. I can tell you anything you want to hear, as every politician continues to do.. Whither you want to continue to believe it or not is beyond me.
It is not length of life, but depth of life.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
How a Man plays the game shows something of his character
How he loses shows all of it..
I am sicking &
ing tired of paying the bills for every Tom, Dick & Bob out there who wants a government handout! Be it corporate bailouts, partially paying people's 
ing mortgage payments (even people with $750,000 homes!) and now everyone's 
ing Doctor bills! Obama is out of control - I call for his impeachment! Press on, OBama ZOmBie!!!
I have spoken!
“If you treat an individual as he is, he will stay as he is; but if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to be and could be.” ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
When the average American has the same health plan/access as the President,we might have a pretty good plan. Doctors gotta eat, but hey, so does everyone else. The cost for this and pretty much every thing else we do will be as reasonable or rediculous as we care to make it. Btw, the AIG bonus money would have bought a hellova lot of asprins, just my opinion.
the hardest part of doing nothing, is knowing when your done.
I think the President's health plan gives him few hospital/doctor choices...national security, you know. Congress, now, that's different. I think they get more choice than the President.
“If you treat an individual as he is, he will stay as he is; but if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to be and could be.” ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Addendum to my previous question about Pence; this gives some indication where he stands on immigration issues:
http://www.ontheissues.org/IN/Mike_Pence_Immigration.htm
After checking over this site, I am less enthusiastic about Lugar and downright disgusted with Bayh.
“If you treat an individual as he is, he will stay as he is; but if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to be and could be.” ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe