“The way to control health care prices is to cut out bogus lawsuits that are driving up medical insurance costs and forcing doctors to leave the profession.”
This is simply a fraud. In fact, net claims on medical malpractice haven't been going up over the last years, while premiums charged by the companies have skyrocketed. Litigation isn't driving up insurance costs; greed is. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reported that there is no connection between malpractice tort reform and overall health care spending.
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Of the 47 million people in America without health insurance, 9 million are children. Of that 9 million, two-thirds qualify for coverage under the State Children's Health Insurance Program. President Bush has stood in the way of an expansion of SCHIP, and conservatives have run a disinformation campaign designed to smear the effort to provide coverage for all of these children.
In reality, polls show that by a 2 to 1 margin Americans prefer a universal health insurance system run by the government and financed by taxpayers over the current system. Medicare is too popular for conservatives to attack. It can be used as a baseline for other models. And the very right-wing politicians who spout such nonsense are themselves benefiting from generous government-run programs that work just fine.
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Medicare isn't socialized medicine. The government doesn't run the hospitals or clinics. Patients choose their own doctors. They go to private hospitals. Expanding Medicare would simply increase coverage and cut costs by creating a system in which everyone contributes and everyone benefits. It would allow us to spend our money on health care rather than insurance company bureaucracy.
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“Universal care will mean government rationing of health care. There will be less innovation, longer waiting lists, and patients won't be able to see the doctors they want.”
We already ration health care—by what you can afford, not by the care you need. In reality, as Medicare shows, a universal program would ensure that people get the care they need—without worrying about insurance companies not covering some tests or procedures. Health care delivery will speed up, not slow down, because less time and effort will be spent on overhead and administration. Patients will have the choice to see the doctors they want, and the same incentives for medical innovation will exist. In fact, with the overall savings that will be achieved, it should be possible to increase support for medical research.
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This is simply a fraud. In fact, net claims on medical malpractice haven't been going up over the last years, while premiums charged by the companies have skyrocketed. Litigation isn't driving up insurance costs; greed is. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reported that there is no connection between malpractice tort reform and overall health care spending.
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Our country's current health care system wastes hundreds of billions of dollars in administrative and advertising expenses, and in efforts to shift or deny payment. Medicare's administrative costs are four times cheaper than private insurance companies.
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Costs are out of control, and our current system is broken. Health care costs are increasing far faster than wages. There are already 45 million people without health insurance, and the number is rapidly rising. Millions more cannot afford comprehensive coverage. And Americans who can afford health insurance now are worried about losing it if they change jobs or if it becomes too expensive.
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In talking about health care, emphasize quality, choice and affordability. The moral argument that everyone should have health care is important, but it doesn't work on its own. People are worried about rising costs and cutbacks in the coverage they have now, and they worry that a government-financed system will provide less choice and lower quality care.
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Of the 47 million people in America without health insurance, 9 million are children. Of that 9 million, two-thirds qualify for coverage under the State Children's Health Insurance Program. President Bush has stood in the way of an expansion of SCHIP, and conservatives have run a disinformation campaign designed to smear the effort to provide coverage for all of these children.
Making Sense 2008!
