A National Referendum on Health Care Reform
I propose a National Referendum on Health Care reform. Seldom has an issue arisen, other than war, that will directly affect so many citizens both in their personal lives and in their pocket books. The current debate is funded by and carried out among lobbyist for private insurers and pharmaceutical companies, members of congress, members of the administration and a disparate group physician representatives. So far no one has asked the people what they want except the pollsters and none have produced definitive answers partly because, at the moment, there are no definitive choices.
What should the choices be? This being essentially a two party country, there should be three choices: a Republican Plan, a Democratic Plan and a Single Payer Plan as described in HR 676 and SB 703. Each plan gets a description, a list of features, a list of things that will change from the current status, and each gets a price tag provided by the CBO. Why three and not two? Two reasons. The Single Payer Plan is neither Republican or Democrat but, according the pollsters, it is the choice of the majority of physicians in this country and, in every cost evaluation by the CBO and many states, it is the only plan that provides universal health insurance coverage and is cost neutral.
Then everyone gets to vote. The results will give our congressional leaders some objective information about the wishes of the American people in regard to how they want their health care delivered and how much they are willing to pay for it. What could be simpler?
Given the difficulty forging a bipartisan plan so far, it appears that health care reform is looking more and more like a horse built by a committee. Perhaps a camel is what we need to take us across the desert of decision making, a desert devoid of facts untainted by self interest. Objective choices about health care reform and the price tag of each choice would be a refreshing drink at an oasis of clarity in the ferocious desert of money through which this process is marching.