Recently I had the chance to go on FOX News Radio and talk about health care. I had three minutes to persuade people to think about health care and lack of insurance in a new way, and to reconsider the plan Barack Obama proposed---because there's rampant misinformation about his plan. More than that, though, I wanted to address the belief that people just need to get health care on their own, and correct misperception that the uninsured are their own problem, with no effect on the rest of us.
Following is a transcript of my three-minute speech. It's my contribution to Blog Action Day 2008: Poverty.
We’ve got to talk about health care…
Groceries or medical treatment?
That shouldn’t ever have to be a choice.
Yesterday Andrea said the Constitution is the law of the land---true. She also said it doesn't guarantee health care. I'm going to debate that point.
The framers of the Constitution included the inalienable rights of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" based on John Locke's philosophy, which listed health as something the government ought to guarantee. So let's drop the idea that the government has no role in health care or get caught up in what the country’s founders intended. It's moot, anyway, since we already have national health care: Medicare and Medicaid.
Those don’t cover everyone, though, and right now at least 47 million Americans are uninsured.
When people don't have health care, they still need medical attention---who pays for that?
We all do.
Let me back that up with hard data:
The National Coalition on Health Care’s report found that the US spends more on health care than other nations that provide health insurance to all citizens.
Families USA’s report revealed the economic threat the current health care system creates for American cities. That report said, "…cities are profoundly affected by the rising number of uninsured Americans. . .These problems have an impact on all city residents, regardless of their health insurance status, and they affect cities' ability to fulfill other municipal functions as well."
Any potholes on your street? Check your city’s budget---is it strained trying to cover health care, like many of the surveyed cities?
The solution isn't "pull yourself up by your own bootstraps." That's not working. Nor is it some $2500 tax credit for an individual or $5000 for a family. It’s definitely not taxing us for employer health care!
The solution has got to be affordable, practical and do-able. It's got to help families, individuals, businesses, and most of all, the elderly and children.
John McCain would make cuts to Medicare, leaving seniors on limited incomes to choose between the proverbial cat food and crucial treatment. Already SCHIP funding was cut under Bush, leaving 6 million children uninsured. It wasn't based on health need, it was based on a number.
Let's talk facts, instead of lies that say Obama's plan fines small business or is national socialized health care---NOT TRUE!
- keeps health care private,
- lowers rates through an Insurance Exchange
- leaves medical decisions between doctor and patient
- increases employer coverage through tax credits provides catastrophic health coverage
- requires pre-existing conditions to be covered
In short, it increases coverage and decreases costs.
Go read Obama’s plan---don't just take my word or someone else's. You won’t find anything about fines or socialized medicine---check it out on factcheck.org.
I've watched families go under from health care costs. I want my family and my community healthy and safe. I don't want my town choosing between a well-staffed fire department or a preventable major epidemic.
Medical treatment for one very sick person—old or young—shouldn’t be the health crisis that makes groceries a luxury for the rest of the family.
We need a solution like Obama’s, not a hand-off like McCain’s.
We need
…a plan that extends what already works to cover more people, not a number you fill in at tax time.
…a plan based in what already works, not a so-called health care tax credit that’ll actually make your taxes higher.
Thank you.
Suggested Additional Reading:
Health care crisis, lack of state and federal aid crushing American cities
McCain's Health Care Plan: Making Consumers Suffer More
* SCHIP expired on September 30th, 2007. As a result, millions of children (6 million as it happens) lost health coverage:
“Many of these children are uninsured because their families’ incomes are too high for Medicaid but too low to make private health insurance affordable. SCHIP coverage only costs these families 5% of their gross income and many children can get SCHIP coverage for free. Although this program has been a step in the right direction, as many as 2 million children who qualify for SCHIP coverage still lack health insurance, in part due to insufficient funding.”
Source: Insuring our children
* “According to the Center for Studying Health System Change, health care spending rose 10 percent in 2002 and that followed a slightly more than 10 percent increase in 2001—the largest jump in more than a decade. In the first six months of 2003, health spending rose another 8.5 percent. Premiums for employer-sponsored coverage increased nearly 13 percent in 2002. As employers refuse to pay their fair share, this trend may result in millions of workers losing their employer-based coverage.”
Source: “What’s Wrong with America’s Health Care?”
* “Every year, 759,000 children with asthma may be at risk of a major asthma attack while they have no health insurance. About 30 percent of those families earn more than 200 percent of the federal poverty level, putting them above the threshold for the state children’s health insurance program in most states.”
Source: “Many Children With Asthma Not Receiving Medication Due To Lack Of Insurance”
Julie often proselytizes about health care at Moms Speak Up and Using My Words.
Hey, Julie, great post. Just one minor quibble: SCHIP didn't expire. The reauthorization didn't pass - Bush vetoed it twice - but the program was extended through March 31, 2009 (P.L. 110-173). The programs *sorely* needs reauthorization since it serves more children than the original and the Deficit Reduction Act futzed with the documentation requirements needed to enroll (read: tries to keep out brown people from certain nations to our south).
Posted by: Melissa | October 15, 2008 at 09:18 AM
Excellent and substantive post, Jules! Love those FACTS.
Posted by: cynematic | October 15, 2008 at 10:13 AM
thank you, Julie, for braving Fox in order to get these messages out there and hopefully across to people desperately in need of hearing them - even if they didn't know they needed it. *especially* then.
you rule.
Posted by: lildb | October 15, 2008 at 03:34 PM