There are many interesting ideas in this world. This blog is dedicated to pursuing them wherever they go. Politics, philosophy, religion, environment, and anything else that captures imaginations and leads to healthy discussions. Never take the world for what it is, there's always a better way to do something.
This is despicable. The woman is in a vegetative state, her husband has to quit his job to care for her, and guess what.. her health insurance (Blue Cross) doesn’t want to pay. I worked both as a nurse assistant in the past, and yes I’ve been attacked too. I feel so sorry for her and her family. Not only does she get injured while doing her job taking care of others, but now her family has no way to pay for her care. To me it doesn’t matter whether her stroke was related to her workplace injuries.. she should not be denied care, she should get both health insurance and work compensation benefits.
Her attorney is holding a press conference later today, where he will call on the state board to expedite their decision. I hope and pray that the insurance provider will be forced to pay for her medical needs. I also hope and pray that this doesn’t happen to anyone else again.. although we know that’s a lost dream. Maybe a government option would prevent things like this from happening.
A poll released earlier today, by Washington Post-ABC News, found that over majority of the American Public does support a government created public option to compete with private health insurance providers. Of those individuals polled, 57 percent reported that they either strongly support or somewhat support a government created health plan to compete with private insurers. There is also a lot of opposition to the proposal, with 40 percent of those polled reporting they strongly or somewhat oppose the plan.
It appears there really is no middle ground on this issue. It is definitively one of the most debated and fought over bills that I have seen firsthand. Pundits and supports from both sides have been trying to sway the public opinion, which seems to go by party lines, whether Democrats support the bill and Republicans strongly oppose. What adds to the intensity, and unfortunately smear, are the corporate interests that have a lot at stake on this bill. Health insurance providers have been very involved. However, it looks like progress is slowly being made.
I was a little surprised with the poll results. With all the negative remarks I’ve been hearing about Obama recently, I began to feel in a minority as his supporter, despite the fact that the guy had nearly 70 million people vote for him. However, this is good news, or at least for me. I’m sure I’ve stated before that I support the health care overhaul. Not only do I think it is the government’s duty and obligation to provide adequate health care for its citizens, but a government option would give some control the population.
I don’t think most people realize that anything that is government owned is accountable to the general public. It is socialist, however, it is also democratic. The private health insurance providers do not have to answer or look out to the public. The primary concern of the executives in charge is not the well-being of the customers, but rather the profits made for the investors. The general public does not have any direct ways to influence the policies and decisions made by the men in charge within the private sector. With the government option, on the other hand, the primary concern is not the bottom line.
It might be more expensive.. but sometimes democracy is.
Another interesting article in Yahoo! News today. Its a Fact Check, written by Alan Fram, that addresses some of the statements in the commercials recently in regards the proposed Healthcare Bill. According to the article, the the insurance industry uses facts selectively and mixes accurate assertions with misleading spin and an embrace of worst-case scenarios.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a supporter of the Healthcare Overhaul that the Congress is trying to pass right now. To be honest, I think they should just raise taxes to pay for it, but that’s a discussion for a different day. But this article talks about a big player in the legislature process that many might not be aware off.. the Lobbyist.
It scares me how much power lobbyists have in Washington. With sometimes limitless bankrolls behind them, coupled with experience and connections in politics, these men and women probably have more impact on the laws that get passed in this country than most Senators and House Reps. Indeed, they quite often shape both our domestic and foreign policies.
The question is how do we stop them? Do we want to stop them?
There have been some good news in the last few days regarding the healthcare debate. Maine’s Republican Senator Olympia Snowe has stated that she will vote for the Healthcare Bill. She is not the only one. Another Republican Senator from Maine, Susan Collins, has also signaled that she might support the measure.
I am in favor of the healthcare overhaul. By no means do I think it is a perfect plan, it has many holes and faults. However, I believe it is an improvement, imperfect as it may be, of what we have currently in our country. I also understand that there are many people who disagree with the proposed health care overhaul.. who disagree very strongly and probably for valid reasons.
I am hopeful and excited not only because the reform is moving forward, but specifically because potentially two Republican Senators maybe break from their party on this. THIS IS HUGE. In a political landscape that has been dominated by smear campaigns and divisive politics, the fact that two legislatures are willing to do something that is viewed unfavorably by their party should be praised and celebrated. Every politician is talking about reaching across the aisle. Very few actually do so.
It’s an obvious sacrifice on the part of Sen. Snowe and Sen. Collins.. however, it’s a sacrifice I hoped for, expected, and appreciate.
