When EveningStar refers to the $2.5 trillion we spend on healthcare, he's talking about the entire country all together, government and individuals and business, I guess. So the two numbers don't even belong in the same discussion.
Furthermore, I dismiss all of these projections. They strike me as wildly inaccurate. I also believe that it's dumb for the government to pay subsidies so people can buy health insurance from a for profit health insurance company. It's so dumb it almost hurts my head. For that matter, isn't the same convoluted system what Obama wants to simplify in the student loan business? (Yes, the answer is yes, he does want to simplify that system in which the Fed Govt shovels money over to banks which provide the loans, instead of just providing the loans directly.) So if he wants to clean up that mess, why create another mess in health care insurance?
David
The problem is the total that we spend. Anything that doesn't attack that problem is worse than a waste of time. We're going broke, and our health care expenses are a large part of the problem.
A mandate for private insurance vs. a mandate for a single payer type system are two completely different things.
Another general issue that few are discussing is why anyone is confident that we're going to strongly enforce the new regulations on the private insurance industry and or that the industry won't find severe loopholes. And of course it's entirely possible that (as I've pointed out) when Republicans inevitably regain power (possibly directly because of this legislation in some ways) they'll exploit flaws in the system to further weaken regulations and gut the subsidies that mask inevitable price increases. And don't forget that it's not just about insurance premiums, it's also about co-pays, deductibles and drug costs. Just one loophole in one area can royally screw us.
Yes, I realize that technically that's possible with any reform, but it's specifically relevant in this case because the proposed reform is so damn weak and because it ultimately strengthens the private, for-profit system. That means it should be especially easy to take a mediocre system and make it downright horrifying in a relatively short period of time.
I know it's possible that might not happen, but of course the industry lobbyists are going to be fighting for that the DAY after the bill passes, especially with elections coming up.
Every liberal/progressive in Congress (Senate and House) is already voting Yes for this bill, so how exactly would we get votes from Conservatives for Single-Payer?
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No way in hell we could pass single payer. BUT *if* they had started with Single Payer I think right now they'd be voting yes on a Medicare-buy-in, in which case I and many others would be much more enthusiastic about the bill.
And before you ask the next question my answer would be that I'd hope that if the current bill dies (it won't) that a Medicare-buy-in would pass within the next several years as more and more pressure for a real solution comes down from the public as they realize the system is broken.
