So as I'm sure most of you know, Obama took a historical step yesterday by finally signing healthcare reform into law. This is a big plus for Obama and his movement to bring real change to America.

Of course the Republicans are now having their little hissy fit, refusing to work past 2pm in Congress. They liked to use the phrase "listen to the American people" when they thought the majority of Americans opposed the bill, but now that polls are showing that most people are happy it passed - I wonder why they're still acting like children.

Anyway, opinions on the healthcare bill passed?

That is great news. I really don't know that obama passes out the bill about health-care reform in law. It's really historical steps done by government. Now, all person get benefits for their future and also for their child.

canada had it first

It's unconstitutional. They're forcing you to buy something to be a citizen, while treating the country like a business. What'll happen to the current health insurance agencies? It's like saying, "My car has a flat tire, so I'm going to rebuild my transmission." I'm not saying that uninsured people shouldn't have health care if they can't afford it/it's unavailable to them, but the government should focus on them, rather than the people that already have health care.

And what about malpractice? If government funds all health care, that would mean the US government, an organization with enormous amounts of cash at its disposal, would be ultimately responsible for health care workers' mistakes. Whether or not a doctor has made a mistake, he or she is always a target for frivolous lawsuits by money-hungry lawyers and clients that smell deep pockets. Even if the health care quality is the same as in a government funded system, the level of lawsuits is likely to increase simply because attorneys know the government has the money to make settlements and massive payouts. When the government has the ability to spend several trillion dollars per year, how much will a jury be willing to give a wronged individual who is feeble, disfigured, or dying?

With government-paid health care, any risky or unhealthy lifestyle will raise the dollar cost to society. Thus, politicians will be in a strong position to pass more "sin" taxes on things like alcohol, high fat food, smoking, etc. They could ban trans fat, limit msg, eliminate high fructose corn syrup, and so on. For health nuts, this may sound like a good thing. But pretty soon, people will find they no longer have the option to enjoy their favorite foods, even in moderation, or alternatively, the cost of the items will be sky high. Also, it just gives the government yet another method of controlling our lives, further eroding the very definition of America.

(06-08-2010 06:15 PM)Edge of Existence Wrote:  It's unconstitutional. They're forcing you to buy something to be a citizen, while treating the country like a business. What'll happen to the current health insurance agencies? It's like saying, "My car has a flat tire, so I'm going to rebuild my transmission." I'm not saying that uninsured people shouldn't have health care if they can't afford it/it's unavailable to them, but the government should focus on them, rather than the people that already have health care.

And what about malpractice? If government funds all health care, that would mean the US government, an organization with enormous amounts of cash at its disposal, would be ultimately responsible for health care workers' mistakes. Whether or not a doctor has made a mistake, he or she is always a target for frivolous lawsuits by money-hungry lawyers and clients that smell deep pockets. Even if the health care quality is the same as in a government funded system, the level of lawsuits is likely to increase simply because attorneys know the government has the money to make settlements and massive payouts. When the government has the ability to spend several trillion dollars per year, how much will a jury be willing to give a wronged individual who is feeble, disfigured, or dying?

With government-paid health care, any risky or unhealthy lifestyle will raise the dollar cost to society. Thus, politicians will be in a strong position to pass more "sin" taxes on things like alcohol, high fat food, smoking, etc. They could ban trans fat, limit msg, eliminate high fructose corn syrup, and so on. For health nuts, this may sound like a good thing. But pretty soon, people will find they no longer have the option to enjoy their favorite foods, even in moderation, or alternatively, the cost of the items will be sky high. Also, it just gives the government yet another method of controlling our lives, further eroding the very definition of America.

You've bought into the right-wing lies far too much.

First of all, your question on "what will happen to the health insurance agencies?". It's clear that you're of the opinion that healthcare reform will put them out of business, since the rest of your post seems to operate on the premise that it will lead to "government funds all health care". I'm unsure as to how you came to that conclusion, since you're clearly aware of the individual mandate to buy health insurance. That's right... by law, people will HAVE TO buy their product. How on Earth is that a bad thing for the insurance companies? It's not. It's a great thing for them.

You then said "government should focus on [the uninsured], rather than the people that already have health care." Have you heard the problem about pre-existing conditions? Over half the people in America who go bankrupt, do so because of a healthcare crisis. 80% of those people who go bankrupt because of a healthcare crisis HAVE health insurance. So I don't see how one could claim to have brought about healthcare reform if they just ignore all the people who have health insurance and are vulnerable to this problem.

Now, how would you deal with it? There was pretty broad consensus that discrimination against pre-existing conditions should be banned. Such discrimination ensures that those who need healthcare most will have the hardest time getting it. Ok, so ban that. Now what happens when you ban that? Well... what would stop everyone from cancelling their health insurance, and then only purchasing it when they get sick? After all, insurance companies would not longer be able to discriminate you for having a pre-existing condition. So, the ultimate solution to that is the mandate. Ensure that everyone already has health insurance. That way, they can not abuse the system.

On the subject of malpractice... you've gotten the law mixed up. If a doctor, or hospital, is liable for malpractice... then it is the doctor or hospital who is sued. Are insurance companies being sued right now when a doctor or hospital commits malpractice? No. Under this hypothetical situation of the Government being the sole insurance provider left, they would still just be an insurance provider. They would not be liable for malpractice lawsuits.


Just on a side note: The whole Republican talking point of "Government run healthcare" was originally based on the idea of a public option, when it was being considered. It's kind of funny that the idea of the Republicans was that everyone would go to the public option because it was cheaper and therefore would put private companies out of business, yet all the while claiming how bad Government insurance would be. A complete contradiction. But yes, this talking point was based on the inclusion of a public option. Yet when the public option was removed, they STILL continued the talking point. Except this time they just gave no evidence to back up their claim.

The plan is not a government takeover of health care like in Canada or Britain. The government will not take over hospitals or other privately run health care businesses. Doctors will not become government employees, like in Britain. And the U.S. government intends to help people buy insurance from private insurance companies, not pay all the bills like the single-payer system in Canada. The government would create health insurance exchanges for people who have to buy insurance on their own, so they could more easily compare plans and prices.