Daily News Updates - Health Insurance News

Daschle -- Better Health Care System

Tom Daschle, former U.S. Senate Majority Leader, recently addressed a large gathering of business leaders on the US health care industry. His stirring message was concerning health care reform. He suggested the general feeling is that the US has a good health care system that just needs “fixing”. Not close. Figures show that the US is way far down the list. The World Health Organization recently reported that American medicine is 37th down this list. Americans are paying 50% more per person for health care than the second highest, which is Switzerland. Even with all this expense, Americans on average die younger than the peoples of Slovenia, Costa Rica and Cuba.

The scare tactic is that serious health care reform would cause the very negative effect of rationing. Mr. Daschle points out that the current system has already done that. The general public is being severely rationed from adequate health care because of low income, the nature of the illness and strict limits on what health care coverage they can get. It’s distressing to note that, of the 46 millions without any coverage, many are working a steady jobs but still can’t afford the insurance. The numbers are staggering! The urgency is spiraling out of control. With employer-based insurance plans alone, the cost of insurance is skyrocketing up five times faster than wages! How much worse is it for the millions who don’t even have employer-based insurance plans?

The problem is that powerful forces within government and industry strongly oppose major health care reform in favor of another band-aid (throw us a bone, now and then). Business is good for those few and they are well-insulated from being personally affected. Their flowery words and unsupported abstract ideas only cloud the main issue. A critical issue is that an incredibly high number of Americans have already fallen through the cracks and receive almost no medical attention and that many more will follow each day. The current system cannot be sustained much longer.

Now, more then ever, it is imperative for most Americans to seriously address these issues. The American healthcare system is in crucial need of broad reform, and soon. We must not give up. We must make our voices heard. We must get involved with our presidential candidates and filter through all the gossip and endless philosophic rhetoric. We must keep the worst problems in focus and insist that they are properly addressed.