It will take a concerted effort to overcome the special interests and their supporters in Congress if we are to obtain new health insurance programs that provide for universal coverage and a government-sponsored health care option. If we don't achieve this program in 2009, it may be many years before such an opportunity again arises. For me, this is the battle of my lifetime for my children, so that they can be assured of the fundamental right of health care.
I offer the following principles to guide us through getting a decent plan in the US:
- No private, for profit company should have the right to decide who can and who cannot have health insurance in the US
- No individual should have to take or keep a job solely to obtain or maintain health care coverage
- No individual should have to marry someone or remain married to someone solely to obtain or maintain health care coverage
- No individual should be forced to declare bankruptcy because of his or her inability to pay for health care for someone in his or her family
- No individual should have to emigrate from the United States for the purpose of obtaining affordable health care (no health insurance exiles)
- No business should be at a severe competitive disadvantage against its international competitors because of the cost of providing health insurance for its employees (the GM principle)
As things stand, people are working past their retirement ages because it is the only way to provide employer-based health insurance for needy children and spouses who would otherwise be unable to obtain insurance. Also, people are staying in abusive relationships (both employment and marital) to keep their access to employer-based health insurance. Companies are reducing or eliminating health care insurance because it is the only way that they can afford to stay in business, thus putting more and more of the burden on individuals.
Many individuals who oppose a universal or single payer plan think that they could never find themselves in a situation where they would need such a plan. If they lose their job or have a severe health problem in their family, they will quickly discover the need to have a program that is independent of insurance companies and employment requirements.
The special interest lobbies (America's Health Insurance Plans, Big Pharma, the AMA, etc.) have spent billions and are prepared to spend billions more to protect their hugely lucrative positions. For them, the debate is not about providing affordable health care to the largest number of people, but about maintaining their franchises and maximizing their profits. They should be forced to put a "conflict of interest" disclaimer, sort of like a "Smoking Kills" sticker, on all of their ads.
If we want to join the ranks of advanced countries that view health care as a right, then we have to stand up to these companies and to our elected representatives and tell them (and President Obama's team) that every citizen should be entitled to a health care plan just like the one given to every member of Congress.