It appears that the number of young adults without health insurance in the U.S. fell by 2.5 million this year. How did that happen? The passing of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or “Obamacare” resulted in people being able to stay on their parents’ health insurance plans longer.
My company’s insurance premiums have gone up 20 to 30 percent every year over the last five or more years. We have had to change plans and insurance companies every other year to give up some services or benefits in exchange for keeping the premiums lower. It’s been an endless spiral just to keep up.
I am an employer, a job creator, and I must humbly admit: I want a public option. This old way that we have had for the last 30 years clearly isn’t working for me.
The conservatives want to “repeal Obamacare” and the American public is drinking that Kool-Aid. Obamacare is now a reviled term. I don’t get it.
- It raises the age for young people to stay on their parents’ plans. This helped me with my children.
- It makes insurance more accessible and affordable for small business. This is going to help me with my business.
- It removes restrictions on pre-existing conditions. While I am fortunate not to have any preexisting conditions, it is a huge deal for anyone that is unfortunate enough to have a preexisting condition.
- It removes lifetime caps. Again, it didn’t affect me, but heaven forbid I get cancer or something.
So unless you are an insurance company, WHAT THE HECK IS SO BAD ABOUT ANY OF THAT? Why do Romney and Santorum want to repeal it?
- To get kids between 21 and 25 back into the risk area of no insurance?
- To raise my corporate premiums another 30 percent next year?
- To lock us out of insurance if we are unfortunate enough to have a preexisting condition?
And this is the Kool-Aid we drink.
REALITY!! And A Fix for Unemployment, Homelessness and Hunger
In addition to fixing healthcare the right way we need a NewDeal. We need a permanent and updated FDR WPA (Works Progress Administration). A Full employment act requiring the government to provide a job for everyone able to work that wants to work at a living wage or better. At safe, meaningful work where they live. Guaranteed by the US government. With free or very affordable excellent healthcare and free or very affordable education and training for advancement or just personal enrichment.
( http://my.firedoglake.com/iflizwerequeen/2011/05/16/how-about-a-little-truth-about-what-the-majority-want-for-health-care/ )
( Gov. Peter Shumlin: Real Healthcare reform — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yFUbkVCsZ4 )
( Health Care Budget Deficit Calculator — http://www.cepr.net/calculators/hc/hc-calculator.html )
( Briefing: Dean Baker on Boosting the Economy by Saving Healthcare http://t.co/fmVz8nM )
START NOW!
As you all know. Had congress passed a single-payer or government-run robust Public Option CHOICE! available to everyone on day one, our economy and jobs would have taken off like a rocket. And still will. Single-payer would be best. But a government-run robust Public Option CHOICE! that can lead to a single-payer system is the least you can accept. It’s not about competing with for-profit healthcare and for-profit health insurance. It’s about replacing it with Universal Healthcare Assurance. Everyone knows this now.
The message from the midterm elections was clear. The American people want real healthcare reform. They want that individual mandate requiring them to buy private health insurance abolished. And they want a government-run robust public option CHOICE! available to everyone on day one. And they want it now.
They want Drug re-importation, and abolishment, or strong restrictions on patents for biologic and prescription drugs. And government controlled and negotiated drug and medical cost. They want back control of their healthcare system from the Medical Industrial Complex. And they want it NOW!
THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WILL NOT, AND MUST NOT, ALLOW AN INDIVIDUAL MANDATE TO STAND WITHOUT A STRONG GOVERNMENT-RUN PUBLIC OPTION CHOICE! AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE.
For-profit health insurance is extremely unethical, and morally repugnant. It’s as morally repugnant as slavery was. And few if any decent Americans are going to allow them-self to be compelled to support such an unethical and immoral crime against humanity.
This is a matter of National and Global security. There can be NO MORE EXCUSES.
Further, we want that corrupt, undemocratic filibuster abolished. Whats the point of an election if one corrupt member of congress can block the will of the people, and any legislation the majority wants. And do it in secret. Give me a break people.
Also, unemployment healthcare benefits are critically needed. But they should be provided through the Medicare program at cost, less the 65% government premium subsidy provided now to private for profit health insurance.
Congress should stop wasting hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayer money on private for profit health insurance subsidies. Subsidies that cost the taxpayer 10x as much or more than Medicare does. Private for profit health insurance plans cost more. But provide dangerous and poorer quality patient care.
Republicans: GET RID OF THE INDIVIDUAL MANDATE.
Democrats: ADD A ROBUST GOVERNMENT-RUN PUBLIC OPTION TO HEALTHCARE REFORM.
This is what the American people are shouting at you. Both parties have just enough power now to do what the American people want. GET! IT! DONE! NOW!
If congress does not abolish the individual mandate. And establish a government-run public option CHOICE! before the end of 2011. EVERY! member of congress up for reelection in 2012 will face strong progressive pro public option, and anti-individual mandate replacement candidates.
Strong progressive pro “PUBLIC OPTION” CHOICE! and anti-individual mandate volunteer candidates should begin now. And start the process of replacing any and all members of congress that obstruct, or fail to add a government-run robust PUBLIC OPTION CHOICE! before the end of 2011.
We need two or three very strong progressive volunteer candidates for every member of congress that will be up for reelection in 2012. You should be fully prepared to politically EVISCERATE EVERY INCUMBENT that fails or obstructs “THE PUBLIC OPTION”. And you should be willing to step aside and support the strongest pro “PUBLIC OPTION” candidate if the need arises.
ASSUME CONGRESS WILL FAIL and SELLOUT again. So start preparing now to CUT THEIR POLITICAL THROATS. You can always step aside if they succeed. But only if they succeed. We didn’t have much time to prepare before these past midterm elections. So the American people had to use a political shotgun approach. But by 2012 you will have a scalpel.
Congress could have passed a robust government-run public option during it’s lame duck session. They knew what the American people wanted. They already had several bills on record. And the house had already passed a public option. Departing members could have left with a truly great accomplishment. And the rest of you could have solidified your job before the 2012 elections.
President Obama, you promised the American people a strong public option available to everyone. And the American people overwhelmingly supported you for it. Maybe it just wasn’t possible before. But it is now.
Knock heads. Threaten people. Or do whatever you have to. We will support you. But get us that robust public option CHOICE! available to everyone on day one before the end of 2011. Or We The People Of The United States will make the past midterm election look like a cake walk in 2012. And it will include you.
We still have a healthcare crisis in America. With hundreds of thousands dieing needlessly every year in America. And a for profit medical industrial complex that threatens the security and health of the entire world. They have already attacked the world with H1N1 killing thousands, and injuring millions. And more attacks are planned for profit, and to feed their greed.
Spread the word people.
Progressives, prepare the American peoples scalpels. It’s time to remove some politically diseased tissues.
God Bless You my fellow human beings. I’m proud to be one of you. You did good.
See you on the battle field.
Sincerely
jacksmith – WorkingClass 🙂
I think you are both missing some key points.
First, I am not a proponent for radical conservatism. But, I am also not a proponent for Socialism.
“jacksmith”, I think it’s funny how you spout all this garbage about the public option “CHOICE”. Do you really think that anyone would be able to choose how care is provided to them with a “public” option? In your entire post, only the first few paragraphs had ANYTHING to do with Health Care. The rest is just soaked in ramblings about your pro-government beliefs. Relax.
Let me break it down my thoughts on Health Care in this country.
You pay a monthly premium to cover (mainly every-day doctor visits) your healthcare needs. If a catastrophic event were to happen and you end up in the hospital for any long period of time, the costs would be astronomic if it weren’t for health insurance. So, in essence, I think there is definitely a need for SOME kind of coverage, but should our government be the ones to provide it?
Enter Medicare and Medicaid. Both, government sponsored. Both, abused and mistreated. Obviously, the intentions were good, as are most government spawned and sponsored agencies. But let’s be honest, do we have the time and money to regulate most of them the way they should be? Now, people who can’t afford, or can’t receive any other type of health insurance will most likely qualify for this government sponsored health care. They will pay little to no premium for this service while the costs for the service are covered by other taxpayers. Interestingly enough, the same agency that is paying for the healthcare of those who can’t afford it, also decides how much those services should cost based on averages around the country. Well, what do you think would happen next?
Prices for healthcare increase, hence raising the averages and allowing the people who provide the care to get paid more by our government. Cost of living increases because those who COULD afford “everyday” healthcare now can’t. Insurance premiums increase. And, well, you know the rest.
So, why do the “majority” want affordable health care? Simple. The costs of health care have grown out of control because those that can’t afford it are “taken care of” by our government, more specifically, the taxpayers.
We need to change the way we are approaching health care in this country and focus on the root of the problem; the cost of care.
Let’s focus on how we can reduce the cost of care instead of reducing the quality of that care by removing the incentive to provide good quality healthcare.
For this post, I only need one source. The approach is not only simple, but it is common sense.
http://www.ronpaul.com/on-the-issues/health-care/