The health care debate is about to get really wonky (but you know, really important)…the Senate Finance Committee started it’s ‘mark-up’ of Senator Max Baucus’ (D-MT) proposal. This is the time where the Senators on the committee start to debate the bill, add in their own amendments and set the tone for how the rest of the debate. Needless to say – this is the time that they need to hear from you.
There are a bunch of proposals out there – but here’s what we think a proposal needs to make sure young Americans don’t get screwed:
- End discrimination for pre-existing conditions, stop insurance companies from dropping us if we get sick, and cap the amount of money insurance companies charge for co-pays, out-of-pocket expenses, and deductibles;
- Let us stay on our parent’s insurance until we are 26 and let us keep affordable insurance if we change jobs or lose our jobs;
- Give us choices of policies that fit our lifestyle and our budgets in a health insurance exchange (with a public option) and provide assistance to those that still can’t afford insurance.
- Cover preventative care and regular checkups at no cost.
Write your Senator and tell them – I DEMAND HEALTH CARE!
~Mary
Tags: health care, Senate Finance Committee, Senator Max Baucus
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Mary Bio: @Rockthevote Email the author at: blog(at)rockthevote.com |
Thank you, Mary — ! I want to reinforce what you said about a public option for health insurance. The Baucus bill currently doesn’t include any government-run or publically-run health insurance options.
These options are really important to keep costs down. Right now, insurance companies charge as much as they can — which is a lot, because there are lots of places in the US where there’s only one insurance company or where there’s no real competition between insurance companies.
A public option would make sure that everyone had the option (but that nobody would be forced) to sign up for a non-profit insurance fund that is operated for the good of the country, rather than corporate profits.
If we had a public option, we would know that there would be at least one insurer that we could trust — and in order to compete, other insurance companies would have to offer consumers that trust and reliability as well. It’s hard to make enough regulations to limit all kinds of insurance industry abuses, and the way they gouge us for high costs. It’s easier to provide stiff competition — to push them until they reform themselves.
It looks like we’ll only get a public option if we make ourselves heard! If you want to know more or how to get involved, feel free to stop by my blog at publicoption.blogspot.com.
First, health care needs no reform, we have the best in the world!! Don’t believe me, how many people you know have gone to Europe, Canada, Russia, China… for heart surgery. or brain surgery, etc… Our first mistake is assumeing health care is a right, Americans have become so use to being taken care of, every one is looking for a handout. Life is full of choices, I choose to sacrifice as did many of you, while so many other were off having good times I studied and worked. I did this so I could archive my idea of what if feel is success. If health care is a right, then should we not all be forced to donate a kidney to those with renal failure, after all you only need one and its there right. NO, you have a right to not have someone adversely affect your health purposely. We have no right to free health care. Want health care? Like anything earn it. Now having said that, lets reform our laws, Make companies like, Wal-Mart, Target, etc.. fulfill their social responsibility by at least offering full time jobs to a set percentage of there employees, based on the number of persons they employ. The more employees the higher the percentage of full time jobs “and benefits”. Reforming the laws that cause the practice of defensive medical by our doctors. We need people who work in lower paying jobs, not everyone will be a Dr., lawyer, or politician. Thank God !! We and large businesses need and should value these persons in these lower paying jobs, Companies are making millions and we depend on them. There should be laws protecting the workers by forcing companies, “not the American people” to provide insurance to the work force that is making them their millions. This is social justice.
Then lets work from there. HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM IS NEEDED, NOT HEALTH CARE REFORM. Why is there no laws protecting people by forcing large companies to provide insurance to their workers? Politicians, Democrats and Republican are receiving large sums of money for persons whom represent these companies. Corruption through and through, misguided information from both side have divided our Country. We the People need to take it back. Socialism has FAILED in every country. Don’t believe me, move to China, or Cuba. Capitalism works when controlled through properly throughout law. Fails in the face of cooption. Good people must standup to this coruption and greed for power before we are all slave to a Government just like in China and Cuba. “A government big enough to give your everything you need is big enough to take everything you have” – Goggle it. See who said this. Don’t be fooled by the twisted info presented to you. We must consider the long term consequences not the short term payoff for the here and now. Stand up America. Stand up. Don’t believe or feed into the stupidity of being followers of corupt politicians, We need to stop freeloading off the Government–”Tax Payers”. Take responsibility for our own lives and demand other take responsibility for their own lives and stop the freeloading. PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY. NOW THAT IS A CHANGE !!!
Can we add tort reform and allowing for interstate sales of insurance policies to this list? I would rather see an increase in competition being lead by the private market vs. the goverment.
If you really want choice and competition, you will take the public option out of the equation. There are 1300 insurance companies in the US. If you open up state lines, those states that only have 1 or 2 choices will then have 1300 choices. Competition would be fierce and premiums would go down. It makes no sense to have a state with only one choice and then only adding a public option as the other choice. There is no reason for the public option. Our funding gap for Medicare is 52 trillion dollars. We need more free market with some government regulations to take care of the problem of insurance companies dropping customers and insurance companies denying for preexisting conditions. We don’t have to revamp the whole system. We just need to make it more affordable and more available. Also HR 3200 gives a 10 billion bailout to unions. Do you really think this is a wise way to spend our money?
BBlanchard — I lost you at ‘forced to donate a kidney’. The more reasonable you are, and the more carefully you source your claims, the more persuasive you’ll be.
Michael — Tort reform and interstate sales are actually both in most versions of the legislation that’s before Congress — I’m not sure why Mary didn’t include them — maybe she was focusing on things we need that not everyone agrees on.
Kristy — I’m not sure if you’re clear on how competition is working in the present day. Texas, which is an enormous state with lots of customers, has one of the least competitive and most expensive insurance markets in the country. Hawaii, which is tiny, and would probably only be able to support one or two insurance companies, has one of the highest standards of care in the nation — because they heavily regulate their insurance industries, and force them all to be essentially non-profit. No small insurance company from Northern California is going to be able to compete in North Dakota — they don’t have the contacts with hospitals, physicians, or customers there. I agree with you about interstate competition, it’d be great — but it’s certainly not going to solve the enormous problems we have with regional monopolies.
Public option legislation is deficit neutral and would do a great deal to put more money in the hands of individuals. We are, essentially, paying a massive tax when we pay for insurance — but this tax doesn’t go to the government, it goes to insurance industry overheads and profit. We don’t have the choice to use non-profit insurance — we don’t have the choice to support an insurer we trust (we don’t even, because of cost shifting from emergency room care mandates, have the option to pay the exact cost of our own treatment in cash). We have to pay these bloated industries if we want even substandard levels of health care. That to me is a more vicious and destructive limit on our freedoms than a government option could ever be.