Cold clouds of winter
Disperse to reveal the sun
Rachel radiates.
Today, Oct. 26, 2009, Rachel Maddow gave the clearest explanation of health care reform options for the US that I have ever heard or seen. Even my grandchildren could understand it. The clouds parted and comprehension flooded my mind and I realized we need a Public Option that all can buy into. Not a Public Option for 10% or only some states...but a Public Option for All. We need to make this succeed.
http://www.youtube.com/...
For those who can’t access YouTube it went something like this:
- Socialized Medicine: like in Great Britain or the VA system in the US where the government owns the hospitals and employs the physicians.
- Single payer: like in Canada or a Medicare for All system.
- Public Option where anyone could buy into the public (not-for-profit) system
- Public Option only for the uninsured.
- Public Option only for the uninsured and only in some places/opt out. (This is what just came out of the Senate)
- Public Option maybe some day/the trigger. (Fortunately this seems to be off the table)
#4 and of course #6 all have obvious and potentially fatal flaws due to their restrictive nature that would neither spread the insurance risk far enough nor provide needed negotiating numbers. Rachel rightly points out that this could make it NOT work.
So till a Single Payer system can evolve....I will be pushing for a Public Option that all can buy into. Tomorrow I will once again call all the usual legislative suspects. Thank you Rachel.