The Amazing Maze of US Health Care

 Reuters Jaime Harmon:

People do want health care reform Summit Daily News I have to severely disagree with some of the recent letters to the editor claiming that the majority of Americans do not want health care reform. Most of the people I know, myself included, have had extreme hardships due to the current state of health … Obama Backs Senate on Health Bills’ Disparities New York Times Compromise molds Senate health bill Detroit Free Press White House says health-care bills contain cost-cutting remedies Washington Post Reuters

Health News about Jaime Harmon: People do want health care reform – HEALTHLIFESOURCE.COM from HEALTHLIFESOURCE.COM

When a 2,000 page piece of legislation traverses the legislative sausage making process, it is a large target for those who want to take pot shots.

When you are trying to fix a system that is broken in lots of places, it is not an easy process.

Let’s remember what we are trying to fix.

The system does not cover everybody.  Estimates on the number of uninsured range from 30 million to 70 million depending on whom and how you are counting.

It’s expensive.  Our economy already sets aside more resources per person than any other country on the planet.  We pay more in taxes for health care than any other country on the planet.

We are not a healthy country.  Relative to other industrial countries, we don’t live long.  Our babies die before they reach their first birthday.  Our pregnant mothers die in child birth.

That’s a lot of fixes. Read the rest of this entry »

by Steve Benen

THE LATEST SHOT AT HEALTH CARE REFORM…. Nearly every other far-right constituency has manufactured odd reasons to oppose health care reform, so it stands to reason that the gun crowd would get in on the fun.

About a week ago, Gun Owners of America told its 300,000 members that the reform bill pending in the Senate “would mandate that doctors provide ‘gun-related health data’ to ‘a government database,’ including information on mental-health issues detected in patients, which could jeopardize their ability to obtain a firearms license.” Not done there, the alert added that “nothing within the bill would prohibit rabidly anti-gun HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius from decreeing that ‘no guns’ is somehow healthier.”

It’s not an abortion bill, but the debate managed to turn to abortion. It’s not a gun bill, but the debate has managed to turn to guns. It’s funny how the culture-war issues manage to sneak their way into everything.

The Washington Monthly

 Sen. Joseph Lieberman, speaking in that trademark sonorous baritone, utters a simple statement that translates into real trouble for Democratic leaders: “I’m going to be stubborn on this.”

Stubborn, he means, in opposing any health-care overhaul that includes a “public option,” or government-run health-insurance plan, as the current bill does. His opposition is strong enough that Mr. Lieberman says he won’t vote to let a bill come to a final vote if a public option is included.

Lieberman Digs In on Public Option – WSJ.com

Most people across the political spectrum agree that health care is a social good.  They agree that someone else’s health is in their interest.

People may not express it that way.  But as the adage goes- actions speak louder than words.

We support health care for old people through Medicare.  It was Republican President George W. Bush who partially filled the biggest gap in coverage for older people with legislation to add prescription drug coverage to Medicare.

We support health care coverage for poor people through federally supported state Medicaid programs.

We support the Children’s Health Insurance  Program (CHIP) that expands Medicaid programs to the children of the working poor.

We support health care for Native Americans through the Indian Health Service.

We just seem to have a problem with people who work.

It might seem logical that, since we clearly have recognized that health care is a social good, that we should require all employers to provide health insurance.  After all, we require employers to pay for workers’ compensation insurance, and unemployment insurance. Read the rest of this entry »