We hold these Truths to be self-evident...
Three out of five Americans want universal health care, as do three out of five US physicians. If corporate media were to communicate the cost-benefit analyses accurately, those numbers would increase because these studies assert that Americans would save between $100 billion and $300 billion every year.
These savings would cover everyone in the US while saving each of the ~100 million US households $1,000 to $3,000 every year.
The savings come from eliminating excessive and repetitive bureaucratic costs of multiple “health” insurance companies, their advertising, and profits that combined account for nearly one of every three dollars paid for health care. These added costs result in the US paying twice as much per person as every other developed nation while US average health declines relative to developed nations with universal health programs.
Universal health care would eliminate the conflict of interest we currently suffer from, as “health” companies maximize their profit by denying physician-directed health care. In typical Orwellian propaganda, the argument against universal health care is that government will take-over your health care when it’s just the opposite: under our current system corporate agents approve or deny services while under universal health care physicians would make their best calls in consultation with you. Government would have the role of insurance and regulation, just as they currently regulate health and safety industries.
Quality would remain unaffected as physicians could choose to accept or reject government sponsored insurance as they do today. Americans would have greater freedom of choice by choosing any physician who accepts the only insurance plan. From the savings of eliminating the “middle man” of insurance companies, part could be directed to health care professionals so they could receive a raise while consumers lower their costs.
A related problem is the cartel of pharmaceutical companies colluding with our government “leaders” for padded industry profits. Dr. Marcia Angell, former Editor in Chief of the New England Journal of Medicine and currently a Senior Lecturer at Harvard Medical School documents:
The combined profits for the ten drug companies in the Fortune 500 ($35.9 billion) were more than the profits for all the other 490 businesses put together ($33.7 billion).
Dr. Angell concludes that US government will never provide universal health care because both political parties’ “leadership” obeys health insurance companies’ lobbyists rather than legislate for the public good.
We know that government colludes in “health” insurance and pharmaceutical profit-gouging because the level of profits is prima facie evidence of non-competition that, like Wall Street banksters receiving transfers from US taxpayers of literally TRILLIONS of our dollars, occurs with permission of government. When corporate cartels collude with government, this is economic fascism.
As I wrote in making the case that the US is fascist rather than a constitutional republic:
The definition of “fascism” has some academic variance, but is essentially collusion among corporatocracy, authoritarian government, and controlled media and education....American corporatocracy is dominated by Enron-like cartels, headed by banks receiving the transfer of TRILLIONS of our tax dollars to pay-off their gambling debts in exotic derivative markets the federal government regulates only in empty rhetoric. This socialization of corporate-insiders’ losses is fascist, and fundamentally in opposition of the American ideal of cooperative competition on a level playing field. Obvious financial solutions for the public good are ignored in their corporate and not public policy commitment.
The health care policy for the public good is explained in the 5-minute speech of Congressperson Alan Grayson proposing Medicare for all Americans and in the 8-minute discussion of Congressperson Dennis Kucinich on “Countdown.” Webster Tarpley also makes the case:
I urge you to reject the Obama health care bill. This is not reform; it is a bailout of bankrupt insurance companies at the expense of average working people, obtained through coercion and extortion. Forcing Americans to buy insurance from private, for-profit, deregulated companies is clearly unconstitutional. The idea of a mandate to purchase insurance is a reactionary Republican invention, and we want no part of it. Furthermore, this bill’s $500 billion in Medicare cuts are a direct attack on the economic rights of Americans implemented under the New Deal and the Great Society, and will cause incalculable suffering and human tragedy. These colossal Medicare cuts will inevitably result in rationing, delay, and the denial of care, causing patients to die needlessly. The spirit of this bill is that of OMB Director Peter Orszag, the sinister Malthusian bureaucrat who is behind recent attempts to deny Americans Pap smears, mammograms, and PSA tests – as cost-cutting measures.Choose well; our collective future, and your future, depend upon it.
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I appreciate your attention to these facts and encourage your further study and action consistent with your own self-expression. My recommendations:
Policy response: Gandhi and Martin Luther King advocated public understanding of the facts and non-cooperation with evil. I’m among hundreds who advocate:
- Understand the laws of war (and here). These were legislated after WW2 and are crystal-clear that only self-defense, in a narrow legal meaning, can justify war. The current US wars are not even close to being lawful and are legal treason against the US. Those involved with US military, government, and law enforcement have an oath to protect and defend the US Constitution. To fulfill their oath they must immediately refuse all orders associated with unlawful wars and military-related constant violation of treaties, and arrest those who issue unlawful orders. The Oath of Enlistment to the US Constitution supersedes the fascist insertion of Nazi propaganda to "always place the mission first" of blindly following unlawful orders.
- Employ the obvious and simple solutions to end our economic controlled demolition and evolve to a civil economy. End poverty through global cooperation to achieve the UN Millennium Goals by developed countries investing 0.7% of their income (not that the UN is serious for their accomplishment, but the goals are what we should invest to produce). Support global security through cooperation, dignity, justice, and freedom. Create a US Department of Peace to help.
- Communicate. Trust your unique, beautiful, and powerful self-expression to share as you feel appropriate. Understand that while many people are ready to embrace difficult facts, many are not. Anticipate that you will be attacked and prepare your virtuous response in the spirit of competition, just as you do in other fields.
- Prosecute the war leaders for obvious violation of the letter and spirit of US war laws and constant lies to engage in further wars. Because the crimes are so broad and deep, I recommend Truth and Reconciliation (T&R) to exchange full truth and return of stolen US assets for non-prosecution. This is the most expeditious way to understand and end all unlawful and harmful acts. Those who reject T&R are subject to prosecution.
Local perspective: Part of my professional duties as a teacher of economics and government is to produce competent adult citizenry. This includes realization that our nation’s policies and money are managed at a broad community level, and these issues have tremendous local impact. Of course, we all want human beings to be individually successful and enjoy their unique, beautiful and powerful self-expressions. Concurrently, we recognize our commitment to local success is strongly dependent upon the success of the community, and that government policy and economics are drivers.
Our status in early 21st Century human history is that we suffer from a long history in government and money of human interrelationship well-described as vicious antagonism. Governments frequently use war as a foreign policy, despite its illegality and dependent upon public ignorance, with horrific consequences. Economic policy is still created within a “Robber Baron” paradigm to concentrate money to an elite few families. Two examples:
1. National taxes effect you dearly, especially the tax to pay interest on the national debt. This costs the American public over $400 billion every year. This is $4,000 per year for every $50,000 of income. Do the math to understand your household’s tax burden for a monetary policy invented by banks for banks to create our money supply as debt. Your competence in this area contributes to our collective voice to simply shift monetary policy to easily pay the national debt, enjoy full employment, collectively save us over a trillion dollars every year, and finally realize what our brightest American minds have been advocating for centuries beginning with Benjamin Franklin. This would have unprecedented local benefits, and requires collective power to accomplish.
2. Ending poverty everywhere on our planet would cost just 0.7% of our income and save a million children’s lives every month. This human accomplishment will cause unimaginable joy at our local level.
To consider:
"If we are to have peace on earth, our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective. No individual can live alone, no nation can live alone and as long as we try, the more we are going to have war in the world. Now the judgment of God is upon us and we must either learn to live together as brothers or we are all going to perish together as fools."
--Inscription on Dr. Martin Luther King’s statue, Moorehouse College, Atlanta
"The day that hunger is eradicated from the earth, there will be the greatest spiritual explosion the world has ever known. Humanity cannot imagine the joy that will burst into the world on the day of that great revolution." -- poet Federico García Lorca
Comments policy: I welcome questions and comments that are civil and pertain to the article topic. Impolite and impertinent comments are subject to deletion. You are a guest here. It is not censorship if you violate the rules and your comment is deleted.
Please consider that I’m among hundreds of writers who have documented our own government’s disclosure of propaganda programs to support their wars. I suspect my articles are under such propagandistic attack from comments that use typical rhetorical fallacies to distract readers from the facts. I invite readers to sharpen their ability to discern such propaganda. They are characterized by a combination of: never addressing the facts, lying about verifiable facts, diverting attention through unsubstantiated belief in an alleged expert, irrelevant data, straw-man attack that distorts the facts, ad hominem attack of insults to the messenger, vile comments to repulse readers, and lies of omission and commission.
I will use such comments to point-out the propaganda or delete them at my discretion. Again, all relevant and polite questions, and factually accurate comments are welcome. As a professional educator I’m in agreement with my experience and research: we learn best from multiple perspectives in mutual commitment to understand the facts, see those facts from diverse points-of-view, and consider various policy proposals of what we should do.
For those involved in support of US government-sponsored disinformation, I invite you to consider the quality of human relationships you wish to work toward. National security and a brighter future is not a function of fear, manipulation, and control. Our best security follows cooperation, justice under the law, dignity, and freedom. Working for your best imagined self-expression of virtue may include a unique contribution from the inside of your agency. Public attraction to the stories of Star Wars and the Harry Potter books/movies recognize that our society’s jump to civilized relations for all of us might require support from people within the “dark side” acting as covert agents for building a brighter future. Another option is becoming a whistle-blower; Project Camelot is a popular venue for people in sensitive positions. Ultimately, I recommend a Truth and Reconciliation process to exchange full truth for no prosecution, explained in detail at the link. Please consider the wisdom of your own “Scrooge conversion” to act for the benefit of all humanity rather than your self-proclaimed controlling, manipulating, and loveless “masters.”
“Scrooge was better than his word. He did it all, and infinitely more; and to Tiny Tim, who did not die, he was a second father. He became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man, as the good old city knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough, in the good old world. Some people laughed to see the alteration in him, but he let them laugh, and little heeded them; for he was wise enough to know that nothing ever happened on this globe, for good, at which some people did not have their fill of laughter in the outset; and knowing that such as these would be blind anyway, he thought it quite as well that they should wrinkle up their eyes in grins, as have the malady in less attractive forms. His own heart laughed: and that was quite enough for him.”
Comments
I really like your articles on Iran. But this healthcare thing (I am trying to be polite).
We are taken it from both sides with healthcare, either way the insurance companies win.
The other day a guy came up to me in a bar and said "you're a libertarian? My girl had to pay $26,000 for 4 days in the hospital and they didn't even do anhything to her"
Then he went on while waving his fist to say "and you don't want to pay for her". So I had to stop him and say "so you are telling me that someone was going to charge you $26k for a four day hotel stay, and you want to fight me?"
The point is that healthcare is too expensive, and it's because of government intervention that it became so expensive, all these bills are going to do is lock us all into paying outrageous costs. No thanks.
But people can only see 1 step in front of their face, they do not see the big picture.
(tad bit more)
I really assumed someone so on top of the corrupt corpratist that are our government would figure out that the key to low price health care that has plenty of competition, and serves the most people in the best way is a truly free market.
Here is an article I wrote about this in pdf, just giving a few examples of how we could expand competition... and get government out, and give more people affordable, yet good care.
(wouldn't let me post link)
I often agree with your posts, but I STRONGLY disagree here. If individuals could more easily purchase the insurance they want across state lines, the competition would be there to help bring down costs, and insurance companies would have to truly compete for our business. As it is, insurance companies are heavily regulated and government intervention and regs end up making what is offered more expensive. A public option is the easiest way to get what is wanted, as it will force out other insurance companies and lead to the Universal govt run health insurance. As it is, the current health care packages being considered are geared to do the same, but may take a longer time to get to that goal.
As an American living in London for the last 10 years, I can attest to the fact that nationalized health care (for all its faults & failures) is superior to the corporate-run system in the usa where insurance companies profit out of denying care. In my experience, it is a revelation to never be asked to pay for care. When we both lost our jobs, we always kept our health care. You pay into the system when you are working & compared to the taxes back home, it's very reasonable. You can go the private route here, too, if you have the cash or coverage. But it's simply humane and civilized to provide a single payer system for all. If you tried it, you might agree. It's not perfect, but it's better than what is on offer back there. I mean this sincerely.
that 3 out of 5 deal may be true about reform in general but that isn't the case with THIS bill and also because facts are kept secret, nobody has read the bill, why would they do this, EVER, or even try to do it, especially when they talked so much about transparency?
Would you pay $10,000. for the car behind curtain number one that youve never even seen? A pushy salesman at this point would only make me more suspicious.
I could be in favor of healthcare reform but I need details. I would be less likely to trust a future proposal by the same pushy salseman.
Carl, like John Jay I tried to post a link but could not do so. Is there a way for your readers to post links via a different email? It would be great to share supporting evidence or ancillary info from the web on you blog. Thanks for keeping the truth alive.
Your statistics on the 3out of 5 Are not correct. This is a complicated issue. Most want a Health Care system that gives better access to the System that already exists. That is very different from wanting universal health care. And most DO NOT WANT most of what is in this bill.
As to physicians, I am one and almost NONE of the other physicians I work with or have contact with want anything CLOSE to this bill. There are physicians who are in favour of universal ACCESS to the existing system that's true. But I have spoken with very few who want this bill to pass.
Incidently are you aware that only 17% of American physicians are members of the AMA. And many of those closed their membership over the way they endorsed Obama's Scheme. I did. In addition the AMA Delegates are sueing the AMA leadership because their endorsement did not go through the usual channels and was highly politically motivated. Thus there is vast disagreement within even that 17% membership. Most don't know this
We here in the USA have a REPUBLIC, ehich means you do not have the right to violate my rights no matter how many votes you conjour up. Healthcare is NOT the job of the federal government, and forcing me to pay for something I may not even use, is ILLEGAL. Stop supporting these corporations, use mom and pop stores, bleed them dry, they are a scourge of society, especially a free one.
Healthcare is not a right, but me being armed IS, so by the healthcare cults ideas, I should have the federal government buy me a gun and provide ammo free of charge.
Stop the frivilous malpractice suits, put doctors in charge of care, eliminate and make illegal the insurance racket, and keep the market open for alternative medicine and alternative no frills brands. Healthcare will be affordable again, also, some of these administrators and doctors dont need 5 houses in the french riviera either. THIS is how you fix it, not by making sure your campaign donators ride the mandatory gravy train!!!
John Jay, Mel, and teri:
John says, “healthcare is too expensive because of government intervention,” and “the key to low price health care [is] plenty of competition.”
If you have evidence write a title of something we can search, otherwise your claims are refuted by all the cost-benefit studies I’ve read that I explain in the article. The US pays twice as much as all other developed countries and we’re dropping relative to those countries in health statistics.
And dude: where is your love??? You’d let poor children who are currently unfunded suffer and die? What's your plan for them?
Mel, why do you want insurance companies between health care professionals and you??? They suck-up one-third of current costs and provide zero benefits and tremendous costs for denial of care and needless paperwork.
Teri, just provide the name of the website, article title, or something else to get around the bot. Thank you for speaking up :)
Matt and Houdini:
Matt, the current bill is fascist, and 3 out of 5 want universal health care in the honestly-worded polls.
Houdini, I’m not aware of evidence that supports your statement that people favor the current system rather than universal health care. I am attacking this bill as fascist: imposed corporate-directed health care instead of physician-directed at cost.
I disagree: the issue is as simple as one can be. Everyone gets health care as directed by professionals and patients. We set reasonable compensation and oversight. Health care pros can either accept the insurance plan or charge private fees. Patients can see whoever accepts insurance and has the regulated credentials to provide care. Insurance plans can still enter the market at their choice.
We are so far away from the reality of medical care that money has taken the decision-making away from the decision-makers, the doctors.
Some rural villages (in China, I believe) the people pay their doctor every month, until they get sick, at which point the doctor gets no fee.
Personal rather than corporate incentive can only be better for the payer - the patient.
Thanks Carl. There's a health care map of the world that I would suggest checking out to clarify this issue. If you search for "countries with universal health care map" you will see this map listed on sites such freebase.com, digg and blogspot.com. Be sure to enlarge the map for the detailed info. It's pretty elucidating, illustrating that Iraq is now receiving universal health care (due to US occupation) and Israel has it, too. But the USA is in step with China & the majority of Africa with no provisions for universal health care & no plans to even attempt it. Even Mexico is attempting to provide a universal plan. It galvanizes just how sadly expendable human life is in the USA from our government's perspective.
Thanks Carl for your reply. It sounds reasonable except who is the "WE Set reasonable compensation and oversight."??
Teri are you aware of the statistics which show a comparison of our Health care with England and Canada? It was done by Investor's Bus Daily...the Data was from the UN International Health Organization. some examples:
Percentage of Men and women who survived cancer 5 years after diagnosis: US 65% Eng 46% Canada 42%.
Percentage patients giagnosed with diabetes who recieved treatment within six months: US 93% Eng 15% Can 43%
Percentage referred to a medical specialist who see one within one month: US 77% Eng 40% Can 43%
Percebtage of low income seniors(65+) who are in "excellent health": US 12% Eng 2% Can 6%.
It goes on. Clearly the American System is doing SOMETHING RIGHT!!
Carl, Thank you for saying that the Current Bill is Fascist, that is how many of us feel. People want universal ACCESS to health care, NOT the changes in this bill.
Houdini:
Compensation and oversight is “We the People’s” domain. Because what our “leaders” are so undemocratic, we can’t imagine a fair system anymore, but in structure it’s straightforward. We determine what we want (medical specialist supply, etc.), do some professional economic analysis, and make our best call of where to set salaries. These can be temporarily raised to fill areas of shortages. Oversight is the same process as food inspection or street repair in structure.
We continue to collect data to see how we’re doing, and adjust as we go with full transparency and communication to the public as representatives of their money and will.
Without some data to support your assertion, the people who only want access by having the money to pay for it are slipping to about half of the people who want universal health care. And as I’ve argued, this gap will grow if people have the $100 to $300 billion annual savings data to consider.
Houdini: despite those stats you stated, the US health system is still prohibitively expensive and broken. According to World Health Organization stats, the US is ranked only 39th for infant mortality and 36th for life expectancy and we spend the most per capita on health care in the world. What good is it having the best doctors, treatments, etc if too many of us do not have access to it because of price?
Teri, You seem to be selective in what you choose as a Data source for your agenda. Now it is the World Health Organization versus the United Nations International Health Organization. When one puts out data you don't like you switch to the other. LOL. You position frankly appears to be biased and Agenda driven.
"We the people" as deciders sounds good on paper. But "Setting" salaries sounds Communistic/Socialistic. We have to keep in mind the Huge leaps which come from research and development accessed through the money flow evident in the Health industry at large.
Often times these improvements come from unexpected areas of research.
Houdini:
The way to go in honest policy is to put policy goals on the table for consideration (you want universal access?, teri and I want universal care), examine cost-benefit analyses, expert testimony, public education and opinion, and vote. You construct ongoing data collection and analysis, and schedule policy adjustment/change.
Setting salaries happens all the time, Houdini; don’t act surprised. Socialism isn’t something to be scared about and/or scare others. When centralized work is most efficient, we do it that way and hopefully are wise enough for effective management and oversight.
The cartel of Big Pharma show us how little investment they have for research. You’d have to make the case of “huge leaps” with comprehensive data of where the leaps are coming from and from what dollars. I imagine much is coming from university research.
What is Universal Care but ACCESS to the Care that already exists?? Are you saying you want to change actual Medical protocols, change surgery techniques?? It seems what you are saying is that you want everyone to have the same access to the care we have now. If that is the case then, I agree. But this can be done in a much more rational way. This current bill is NOT about that. I think you agree on that. I wonder that noone has called for a Popular vote on this issue. I mean if we are saying what the people want or DON'T. Each state could have a popular vote...then everyone would actually KNOW what the people think.
Seems this is more of a "Deal" between the Insurance Companies/Big Pharma and The Democrats. THAT is not Health Care! This is all deal-making and Tax raising. It is a scheme.
As to Socialism. I will take my cue from history thank you. Examples from Cuba Russia and even the EU don't "smell" well. As the data I gave below show. Indeed our own Medicare/SocSec is Poor.
houdini, I really have no "agenda" (although with so many Americans dying every day from inadequate or a complete lack of coverage, having an agenda that wants to be inclusive rather than exclusive wouldn't be such a bad thing, would it?) I only commented on this topic since I've lived in both the US & UK so have experienced both systems. The health care in places like Scandinavia, Australia,Canada and ( at the very top of the rankings) France, all provide citizens with decent to great care (all pay less than 10% GDP annually for care -- a whole lot less than the USA). Having universal coverage probably does make me biased (as you said). But at least I've actually experienced both systems rather than making speculative comments. I never stated that it was perfect anywhere, just far more humane in places that provide it for all. Once you experience this, it's hard to imagine that anything less is acceptable. We're all in this together.
What makes you think someone who is against THIS BILL would have no experience outside the US??? Indeed why would you assume that? I own a house in Provence and am very familiar with the French system, and through clloegues am familiar with the Canadienne and UK. Not every detail but enough to know I don't want to practice like that. As just one example of apples and oranges is the populations in the countries that you mentioned. ALL and I do mean ALL are much less than the US. AND the ongoing increase of Illegals that come to the US has no equivalent in those counties.
I'm not saying they don't have immigrant influx...but nowhere even close to the US. So their systems don't have the pressure on them that we do.
But again did you even look at the data I presented?? Even with LESS population and less immigration the results FAR lag the US. I think there is something we are doing in the US that does work. We need to tweek it NOT change it.
Provence is great BTW. Visit + enjoy!
The first facts of LA NP Examiners opinion-piece was inaccurate, and the rest of his article was based on these inaccuracies.
First, where did he get his information that 3 out of 5 Americans want Universal health care? I wonder if he took an informal poll in La and asked drunken people.
According to the respected Center for Health Transformation 75% of the American people, do NOT favor Universal health care.
LA NP Examiner said the American people will SAVE between 300 and 500 Billion dollars. Absurd! According to CFHT Medicare will be cut half a trillion dollars and taxes will go up nearly 500 Billion dollars.
LA NP Examiner and others that are willing to put their trust and life in the hands of the government for their health care will get what they deserve. As for me, I opt out of this stupidity and want to make my own educated health decisions. And I don’t want to pay for anyone else’s health care.
Terri said health care in England is superior to the corporate-run system in the usa where insurance companies profit out of denying care...........
1.It is interesting to note that the very insurance companies that obama and his Progressives have been demonizing from the onset of the health care debate are the very companies that are gearing up to profit from the health care mandate. It is yet another scam. So instead of just having the demon health insurance companies to content with, we will be subjected to a totalitarian government and the insurance company. They have made back room deals. Also, just because we will be forced to pay for health care doesn't mean the government committee will allow us to receive it.
2.I love England however, England and the EU have their share of problems, and they serve as a reminder of what we should not emulate in health care in our country.
Grace & Houdini: I said that in the UK you can CHOOSE between the NHS and private care if you have the money for private care. So why not give the American people a choice? Give them universal care and private health care. There are failures within the NHS (I said it was not perfect in my first comment). But I'd rather have this than the profit-for-denying-care racket back home. The latest version of the health care bill is a total scam and far different to any expectations promised by the president during the campaign. And Houdini, I've been to Provence & it is indeed lovely. It's even sweeter that the French have the very best health care in the world.
Grace:
3 out of 5 Americans saying they want universal health care is based on polling numbers for years now. You should do some research rather than lie about it.
You repeat propaganda. Universal health care stops insurance company agents from managing your health care when it counts the most and puts your doctor and you in charge.
Carl: perhaps some of the other commentators on this blog would benefit from watching Sicko. I defy any enlightened person to watch the film and still feel the system in place is viable.
Actually the latest poll this evening on the radio from AP said that 36% wanted this Bill and at least 56% did not. I suppose the rest were undecided.
I assure you Teri, the French DO NOT have the best health care in the world. I would choose Switzerland personally. But if you're talking FOOD!
Carl,
Excellent analysis and critique of this issue. The Public Option needs to be the centerpiece of this legislation, as it is the only thing that would bring prices down and give consumers the option of choosing something besides 1 of the few health insurance company oligarchies in their area. In contrast, a Mandate simply "mandates" profits for health insurance companies, by forcibly giving them 30 million new customers.
The bill needs to be defeated.
It's WORSE than nothing. It is a step backwards.
-------
"The spirit of this bill is that of OMB Director Peter Orszag, the sinister Malthusian bureaucrat who is behind recent attempts to deny Americans Pap smears, mammograms, and PSA tests – as cost-cutting measures."
Yes, indeed. Orzag has turned into an outright Corporatist. It's good to hear someone else has also picked up on this.
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