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A lot of angry, over-the-top rhetoric is muddying our discussion of health care reform. To help clear things up, here’s a brief summary of President Obama’s plan, including how it will stop insurance company abuses and help you—even if you currently have a strong health benefits plan.There is a good new site to correct the masses of misinformation going on about health reform. People who believe in truth and morality need at least to listen to each other and make sure they are not running around fighting against empty enemies. There are no death panels. There is not a takeover of the health care system in this plan. Frankly, I wish the plan would do more than it does to reduce costs, but this is the compromise plan.
Health care reform will stop insurance company abuses.Health care reform will hold down rising costs.
- Insurance companies won’t be able to refuse to pay a claim or give you coverage because of “pre-existing” conditions.
- Your out-of-pocket expenses will be capped. No more going broke because of a serious illness or injury.
- Insurance companies won’t be allowed to charge women higher rates than men or drop you if you get sick.
- Insurance companies will have to cover your children until age 26 instead of dumping them at 19.
Health reform means affordable care will be there for you, no matter what.
- A public health insurance option will force private insurers to compete and will lower costs for everyone.
- By requiring companies to pay their fair share, we’ll stop them from dumping their health care costs on the rest of us.
The reality is that health care costs are spiraling out of control, and everyone in America deserves quality and affordable care. Health care reform simply can’t wait. We will all be better off with real reform.
- If you lose your job,
- or your kid loses his.
- If you get sick.
- When you retire. Affordable health care will be there for you, no matter what. That means you and your family can’t fall through the cracks
- and won’t go broke because of health care bills.
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2 comments:
great post. thanks for doing this.
"Empty enemies" may be concerned about empty -- or unfunded -- promises.
"People who believe in truth and morality" would like for healthcare promises to be supported, or at least reasonable. The first section of promises would raise healthcare costs. Then we are promised healthcare costs will be lowered.
We are also promised that healthcare reform will not raise the federal deficit by one dime. So far that's not true. It can become true because President Obama wants a provision that will raise more money if the promised healthcare savings do not materialize. That means taxes. But most of America has been promised no new taxes. (And the President has more programs and plans that need funding).
Government healthcare programs always exceed cost estimates. This is true nationally and for state-run healthcare reform -- Calcare, Tennecare, Hawaii, Massachusetts -- all of which are either 1) in financial trouble, and/or 2) cutting or limiting the originally-promised coverage. But we're promised this new reform will be the exception.
And the new, cost-saving government system will be funded in part by ferreting out waste and fraud in Medicare (the current government system).
We are told the status quo is "not an option" because Medicare is going broke. So we will add 30 million uninsured people regardless of health status. We'll require costly options (e.g. mental health benefits) but the premiums will be lower. We'll raise money by fining people who won't buy it.
Empty promises are unsustainable. No matter how well-intentioned (and I believe that good people are trying hard to make things better), unsustainable promises have led to very bad results (see, California in general - layoffs, cuts, taxes, failure of major systems, exodus of citizens and businesses).
Suggested reading: The CBO's report "Key Issues in Analyzing Major Health Insurance Proposals," well-footnoted with outside studies. For starters.
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