Daily News Updates - Health Insurance News

Health Insurance vs. Socialized Healthcare, Pt5 -- Let's Compare

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This is the continuation covering Kevin Freking’s clarification of this controversial issue…

From the previous article, addressing the charge that the Democrat candidates are pushing for socialized healthcare, Mr. Freking explains “Still, the mix of private and public coverage bears little resemblance to Canada or Great Britain, two nations that Americans might think of when it comes to universal health insurance.” Taking Canada as an example, Mr. Frekings goes on so state that Canada’s government pays for all the medically necessary services. The provinces decide which services are medically necessary. Typical examples of necessary health care might be surgery, prenatal care and annual health exams at a doctor's office. The health insurance they have is pretty much limited to dental and vision care as well as prescription drugs. Of course, there are always those who would defeat even their system. Because of “waiting lines” for some procedures they would use private health insurance to bypass these waiting lines. This would serve to undermine the fair access to publicly insured services. In many provinces, the use of private health insurance to pay for services covered through Canada’s Medicare program is not allowed.

Both the Clinton and Obama advisors have decided against these kinds of restrictions. Obama’s campaign policy director, Heather Higginbottom, says it this way: "We don't eliminate the employer-based side of the equation. We don't dismantle private insurance. We still have competition and choice and all the things that would lead to adequate supply and good care." The policy director for the Clinton campaign, Neera Tanden, confers: "She wanted to build on the system we have rather than radically reshape it." She adds that, just as older people today are free to buy health insurance to fill gaps in their Medicare coverage, under the proposed plan, new people who select the government-managed plan, will be free to buy additional coverage.

To be continued…