obamacare

Here are some bits and pieces of articles I've read...

I'm still waiting on hearing back from some people I asked to give me their thoughts. Once I get a good view of both sides, I'll be able to better form my opinion.

Because the Obama administration is guaranteeing that Americans will only pay a set proportion of their income for private health insurance, the state will end up picking up the bill. That's hard to reconcile with the administration's assertions that the "reforms" will reduce the fiscal burden.It highlights the core problem: private insurance is a weird and deeply flawed way to provide universal healthcare coverage.- http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03/22/2853179.htm?site=thedrum

The main argument for a “public option” is that it would increase competition. However, if the federal government creates a health care plan that it controls and also sets the rules for the private plans, there is little doubt that Washington would put its private sector “competitors” out of business sooner or later.

Cost or a federal health board could be the deciding factors. President Obama himself admitted this when he said, “Maybe you’re better off not having the surgery, but taking the painkiller,” when asked about an elderly woman who needed a pacemaker.

- http://fixhealthcarepolicy.com/research/obamacare-one-pill-two-pill-red-pill-blue-pill/

If leading Democrats allowed for separate votes on each issue, instead of demanding one vote on a single, massively unwieldy bill, then popular reforms would have been enacted many months ago, likely with substantial Republican support.

Finally, a long bill is a partisan bill and the president knows it. In 2009, Republicans repeatedly asked Democrats to consider individual bills so they could vote for the reforms that made sense, and vote against those that didnt. Ironically, many Democrats now recommend the same approach.

Read more at the San Francisco Examiner: http://www.sfexaminer.com/opinion/columns/oped_contributors/Size-of-health-care-bill-is-an-issue-86124092.html#ixzz0kAjWWZu5

Raising taxes in the middle of a recession is just about the worst thing to do, but what choice do you have when you pass a HUGE bill that you can't afford?