What kind of health care reform do you want?
February 272010
I just received a letter from BarackObama.com encouraging me to contact my member of Congress and tell them I support HEALTH CARE REFORM. Does anyone know what that means?
I’m all for reform — I think 99% of Americans are for reform to minimize costs and maximize benefits…I’m still trying to pin down what this letter is asking of me other than to blindly support a health program nobody knows the specifics to. Still working that lamb angle.
The letter:
Friend –
Members of Congress have been home for just a few days, and they’re already facing increased pressure from insurance companies, special interests, and partisan attack organizations that are spending millions to block health insurance reform
(Pay no attention to the gallup polls that say 50+% of Americans don’t want the Government option)
These groups are using scare tactics and spreading smears about the President’s plan for reform, trying to incite constituents into lashing out at their representatives and disrupting their events
(Scare Tactics/Smears = Facts and potential conflicts).
The goal of these disruptions is for a few people to get a lot of media attention and hijack the entire public discourse. If they succeed, all Americans — Democrats, Republicans, and Independents — will continue to struggle under the broken status quo.
(50+% of Americans polled = the few hijacking public discourse)
It’s up to us to show Congress that those loudly opposing reform are a tiny minority being stirred up by special interests, and that a huge majority strongly supports enacting real health insurance reform in 2009.
(Opposing reform?)
Your representative, Susan Davis, has been fighting hard for real health insurance reform. Can you call the local office in San Diego? Let the person who answers know that you’re a constituent. Then tell them: "Thanks for working to enact real health insurance reform this year. Voters like me support your efforts."
Once you’ve made your call, click here to report it.
Calling should only take a few minutes, but it’s a huge help. These local offices serve as the main connection between a member of Congress and voters in the district. And with representatives home on recess, the staff there are in daily contact with your member, keeping them updated on how many calls they receive that are for or against reform.
Once you’ve called, please tell us. Knowing how many calls are coming in from all around the country will help us better plan our campaign — and help us show that the American people overwhelmingly want health insurance reform this year. Let us know you called:
Thanks,
Mitch
Mitch Stewart
Director
Organizing for America
Donate
As far as the federal government goes, there is only one thing I would like for the federal government to do regarding health care.
Currently, when a new drug formula is "found", it is necessary for the drug company to submit the formula to FDA for Approval before it can be marketed. It is also necessary for the company to have patent protection before they start this, as the formula becomes a matter of public record upon application. The process for approval is expensive, but more importantly, takes approximately 12 to 15 years. This means that when a new, potentially life-saving drug finally reaches the market, the company that owns the patent has 2 to 5 years to recoup their cost of obtaining approval, before the same formula can be made by anyone and sold in America for merely the manufacturing cost plus profit.
Congress could change Patent Law to allow a drug company to renew their patent protection automatically upon FDA approval, allowing the development cost to be spread out over 17 years instead of 2 to 5. This would cut the cost to the consumer/insurance company for these drugs significantly.
The cost of drugs is one component of Health Care. It isn’t all of it, certainly, but it is one area that federal involvement directly and demonstrably increases the cost to the consumer, and a little intelligent action on the part of Congress could help tremendously.
If they aren’t capable of UNdoing the harm they are causing now, I’d rather they didn’t do any more in other aspects of health care.
February 27th, 2010 at 9:39 pm
H R 676
References :
February 27th, 2010 at 10:00 pm
I guess I’m against what Obama is pushing for b/c they said it will raise our taxes.
References :
February 27th, 2010 at 10:45 pm
I want reforms that will limit the already excessive political interventions into health care industries. Strangely, politicians aren’t promoting those kinds of reforms. And society, apparently believing that such problems require political solutions, isn’t pushing back in the least.
References :
February 27th, 2010 at 10:50 pm
Like the (ultimately victorious) Presidential candidate played by Jimmy Smits on "The West Wing," my ideal health care plan would be taking the words "age 65 and over" out of Medicare and making everyone eligible for it.
What the hell, it would do one thing conservatives have wanted for years: Get rid of Medicaid. The poor would still have health care, but Medicaid would be gone!
Of course, this is an ideal, and I don’t think it could be paid for, even with all the money we would have spent on Bush/McCain wars staying home. There’s a reason "Utopia" is impossible: The word literally means "Nowhere."
"Public Option" isn’t the best possible answer. It is, however, the one that has the best chance of passing, because it gives the people what they want: The choice of keeping the system they have, if they like it and can afford it, or trying something else that they can afford.
And, whether the right-wingers and their puppetmasters in the insurance lobby like it or not, it will pass.
References :
February 27th, 2010 at 11:14 pm
I will bet you, the government will raise taxes on our private health care physicians. These physicians wont even be able to afford their own practice. I bet you, our government will make it so everyone has to share the same two or three physicians, and I bet you A Nero surgeon will be making the same money as a pediatrician.
I bet you this plan is just one more step TO REMOVE capitalism and replace it with Socialism
References :
February 27th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
As far as the federal government goes, there is only one thing I would like for the federal government to do regarding health care.
Currently, when a new drug formula is "found", it is necessary for the drug company to submit the formula to FDA for Approval before it can be marketed. It is also necessary for the company to have patent protection before they start this, as the formula becomes a matter of public record upon application. The process for approval is expensive, but more importantly, takes approximately 12 to 15 years. This means that when a new, potentially life-saving drug finally reaches the market, the company that owns the patent has 2 to 5 years to recoup their cost of obtaining approval, before the same formula can be made by anyone and sold in America for merely the manufacturing cost plus profit.
Congress could change Patent Law to allow a drug company to renew their patent protection automatically upon FDA approval, allowing the development cost to be spread out over 17 years instead of 2 to 5. This would cut the cost to the consumer/insurance company for these drugs significantly.
The cost of drugs is one component of Health Care. It isn’t all of it, certainly, but it is one area that federal involvement directly and demonstrably increases the cost to the consumer, and a little intelligent action on the part of Congress could help tremendously.
If they aren’t capable of UNdoing the harm they are causing now, I’d rather they didn’t do any more in other aspects of health care.
References :
February 28th, 2010 at 12:01 am
Everybody pay for your own private insurance. Like me.
References :