Fight for Healthcare |
by Cliford Cawthon |
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Healthcare is a human right, and our rights have been violated for long enough. President Obama stated in his weekly web address last month (Friday, June 5) that “The status quo is broken.” The profiteers have failed and the system is in shambles. The United States spends more on healthcare than any developed nation and in turn we have 46 million (15 percent of the population) without healthcare; 8.1 million are children. We need a renewed system, something that works and something that is a public, not-for-profit system.
The president kicked off his town hall tour in Green Bay, WI, a city that has kept down costs and in turn it has provided fertile soil for political support for Obama’s initiative. This strategy of “going public” is designed to harness the existing popular support for his new initiative. According to a Rasmussen poll, 65 percent of Americans favor the idea of universal healthcare and this public health option initiative is a universally available option designed to compete with the private sector.
Moderate Democratic and Republican legislators have revolted against President Obama’s initiative with the theme “Anything but public.” Reactive protestors say that a public option would cost too much, take away choice, and enjoy an unfair market advantage. The American Medical Association and the opposing legislators profit from the disenfranchisement of millions of Americans while the government picks up the check (i.e. corporate welfare). A recent Politico.com article, “Centrist Democrats Raise Big Concerns,” cites the New Democratic Coalition and the Blue Dog Coalition’s attempt to “ensure that that government-backed health care plan doesn’t undermine the private market,” which would maintain healthcare services as a market commodity—and “ensure” that Representative Allyson Schwartz of Pennsylvania (NDC vice-chair, co-chair of the healthcare committee) would receive $38,823 in campaign funds from the health professionals sector for the 2009-10 reporting period. According to opensecrets.org, eight of New York’s congressional representatives and our junior senator Kirsten Gillibrand ($23,825) also received funding from health professionals.
Our policy interests and course is clear: The interests of a few cannot outweigh the welfare of the many. The objections to universal healthcare, whether by a public plan or a single-payer system that has worked for other developed nations, are largely based on private economic interests; fear from the status quo, and class prejudices.
Many of us in the progressive community would like to insure all Americans under a single-payer plan that uses our large national tax base to fund healthcare (as opposed to “defense” or corporate subsidies), but this is our opportunity and we cannot pass it up. In Western New York, the Healthcare Education Project is organizing pillars of the community to engage in the debate towards progressive solutions. This is now or never; we cannot settle for “market solutions” from conservatives and moderate profiteers who are beholden to special interests. If any readers want to get involved e-mail Sergio at sergio@hepny.org. Let us call on those who say that they represent our interests and remind them to do just that.
Cliford Cawthon
Buffalo
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Reader Comments
jacksmith 02 Jul 2009, 13:05
AMERICA’S NATIONAL HEALTHCARE EMERGENCY! It’s official. America and the World are now in a GLOBAL PANDEMIC. A World EPIDEMIC with potential catastrophic consequences for ALL of the American people. The first PANDEMIC in 41 years. And WE THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES will have to face this PANDEMIC with the 37th worst quality of healthcare in the developed World. STAND READY AMERICA TO SEIZE CONTROL OF YOUR NATIONAL HEALTHCARE SYSTEM. We spend over twice as much of our GDP on healthcare as any other country in the World. And Individual American spend about ten times as much out of pocket on healthcare as any other people in the World. All because of GREED! And the PRIVATE FOR PROFIT healthcare system in America. And while all this is going on, some members of congress seem mostly concern about how to protect the corporate PROFITS! of our GREED DRIVEN, PRIVATE FOR PROFIT NATIONAL DISGRACE. A PRIVATE FOR PROFIT DISGRACE that is in fact, totally valueless to the public health. And a detriment to national security, public safety, and the public health. Progressive democrats the Tri-Caucus and others should stand firm in their demand for a robust public option for all Americans, with all of the minimum requirements progressive democrats demanded. If congress can not pass a robust public option with at least 51 votes and all robust minimum requirements, congress should immediately move to scrap healthcare reform and request that President Obama declare a state of NATIONAL HEALTHCARE EMERGENCY! Seizing and replacing all PRIVATE FOR PROFIT health insurance plans with the immediate implementation of National Healthcare for all Americans under the provisions of HR676 (A Single-payer National Healthcare Plan For All). Coverage can begin immediately through our current medicare system. With immediate expansion through recruitment of displaced workers from the canceled private sector insurance industry. Funding can also begin immediately by substitution of payroll deductions for private insurance plans with payroll deductions for the national healthcare plan. This is what the vast majority of the American people want. And this is what all objective experts unanimously agree would be the best, and most cost effective for the American people and our economy. In Mexico on average people who received medical care for A-H1N1 (Swine Flu) with in 3 days survived. People who did not receive medical care until 7 days or more died. This has been the same results in the US. But 50 million Americans don’t even have any healthcare coverage. And at least 200 million of you with insurance could not get in to see your private insurance plans doctors in 2 or 3 days, even if your life depended on it. WHICH IT DOES! If President Obama has to declare a NATIONAL STATE OF EMERGENCY to rescue the American people from our healthcare crisis, he will need all the sustained support you can give him. STICK WITH HIM! He’s doing a brilliant job. THIS IS THE BIG ONE! THE BATTLE OF GOOD Vs EVIL! Join the fight. Contact congress and your representatives NOW! AND SPREAD THE WORD! God Bless You Jacksmith – WORKING CLASS
Joe 02 Jul 2009, 13:28
jacksmith, nonsense. The government has no business seizing anything in the private sector. This is the USA, not Communist Russia. Give me a break. Spreading fear and uncertainty over things like Swine Flu keeps the wool over peoples eyes and plays into the hands of those who can regulate in their personal best interest, rather than intelligent, efficient decisions that benefit the public's best interest. Look at where recent scare tactics have gotten us: a war in Iraq over terrorist fear, a recording breaking stimulus package whose only quantifiable accomplishment is increasing long term debt over economic fear (see those new job numbers today?)... etc. Just say no to scare tactics. You point out the true problem of healthcare in this country: it's cost. A public insurance option does little to address the cost. Instead, it's a government mandate that the people who profit in excess on the backs of American citizens can continue to do so, only it's guaranteed now and the check is signed by Uncle Sam, paid for by all tax payers. The same greed and profit margins will still exist. Public coverage just brings them even more customers to line their already overstuffed wallets. Costs need to come down before we should consider a public option. Before we should consider doing anything else. That's where the focus *has* to be, or anything built on top of the already broken system will be no more sustainable than it is now. Start with tort reform. Make it cheaper and less risky to practice medicine. If you want your public insurance, maybe it should be in the form of malpractice type insurance to reduce doctors' and hospitals costs. Next, go for the providers of tangible items. Things like (and especially) medication. Big pharma marks up their products 1000%, 2000%. It's absurd. Nobody enjoys profit margins like that anywhere in business. Anybody providing medical goods should be treated like a public utility. They should be regulated like electric and natural gas. Not necessarily fixing prices, because history shows that doesn't work either - but cap profit margins. If they want to gross more, they have to reinvest more... hire more researchers for R&D for example. Create jobs, create innovation, improve their products, and lower costs. Lastly, ban the entire industry from lobbying and campaign donations. Decisions about our health should be based on what's in our best interest, not in serving the highest bidder. Take that financial support system away from politicians and they won't owe anybody favors any more. Once the cost of treatment comes back down to earth, then I'd be glad to entertain the notion of public insurance to help those who still can't afford it pay for it.
Lloyd Marshall, Jr.
03 Jul 2009, 07:00
Health care is not a right; it's a privilege. Tell me... is food a right? Is a home a right? Is having an automobile a right? No... these things are kept and maintained by responsible action and behavior on the part of those who have them. Same for good health... kept and maintained by responsible action of those who seek to maintain such soundness. If there are those who live by the rules and have a hard time getting health insurance, I woudn't mind helping them. However, why should I support health care for those who willingly engage in risky behaviors? Let those who live irresponsibly reap what they have sown. And why should we support government control of health care? Look how they're doing with these bailouts and stimuli packages, not to mention taking 60% of GM and Chrysler... not a pillar of what is good and right for the people. This is the USA, not the United Way. Instead of raising taxes and more government controls, these Congresspeople, bureaucrats, etc., ought to take pay cuts and start cutting out "discretionary" spending. Leave a Comment:
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