Comments on: Health Care Overhaul Dealt Another Blow

Key Group of House Democrats Want Changes in Fast Tracked Bill to Reign in Costs, Address Medicare Payments

[rhs648]

Joe_NY_15 July 10, 2009 7:27 AM PDT
That sounds like just enough to send the democrats packing and get Republicans to take their seats.....Thanks !!!! Just what we needed to re-take control in 2010

That may be easier than we think when people see how much their taxes will be going up. The blue states will shoulder much of the cost of universal health care. Couple that with the trillions of dollars of Obama spending. This will be a plum to the red states. Expectt to see mass defections from the Democratic party. It won't be long.

[jon2012-2009]

jsd330, where are your facts? There are reasons to believe that we can achieve better health outcomes at much lower costs in delivery of health care. For crist's sake, it's happening in more than 30 other countries.

If there is similar underlying economics in other industries, sure we should be open to government playing a role. The whole idea is efficiency: better results, less costs. So the facts? Maybe this concept of capitalism and markets offering the best solution is not perfect. But we need the data, not dogma.

[jon2012-2009]

Joe_NY_15, GiveMeFreedom: So you don't agree that health care reform is for the greater good of this country. Anything you can present by way of facts so that people on the other side can at least begin to understand where you're coming from? When people say the U.S. health care system is the most expensive in the world and is no better than the top-ranked 30 health care sytems, and that our health care costs continue to outpace inflation by a factor of 3, that seems an argument for both improving our health care outcomes and reducing those costs. When other industrialized countries offer universal health care at lower costs and with better results, that seems like we have a lot of room to improve. So what's the problem?

[jon2012-2009]

Canada is one of the 30 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that on average spend less than half our health care costs per person and yet provide coverage for all its citizens. They aren't faced with runaway health care costs that rise three times the rate of inflation, as we do in the U.S. Long term, they don't have to worry that their health care costs will simply overwhelm their economy. Health care is going to account for 20% of U.S. GDP in 2017.

What's more, Canada's health outcomes put ours to shame because their health care system is ranked higher than the U.S. on various measures of quality. (France is ranked #1 but the others--UK, Germany, Italy, the Scandinavian countries--still beat us. We don't make the top 30. If you can believe this, some Third World countries rank ahead of the U.S. in this survey. In a 2003 study of hospital deaths from medical mistakes in 19 industrialized countries, the U.S. had the WORST results.) What we should do, if we can't replicate Canada's health care system in the U.S., is outsource our health care to them since they're just next door. If we want to make hospitals and doctors rich, maybe let's give the money to those who can provide these services more efficiently.

[ramos1129]

A national health care plan is coming. Here is my prescription:

1. Form an independent political free commission respected by everyone.
2. The commission should study the national health care plans already in place in Canada, England, etc. Our own Federal Emlopyee Health Plan needs to be added.
3. Identify the pros and pros of each plan. Then come up with a plan suitable for us borrowing the best aspects of each studied plan and disregarding the cons.
4. Set a time limit for the Commission to report. Make the report available over the web and to the general public.
5. Set up a national plan based on all of these items.

Why reinvent the wheel?

[Joe_NY_15]

Blue dog democrats = Red Dog States in 2012.......LOL

[GiveMeFreedom]

OK great. Now who the flock is going to spend the billions and R&D to make new drugs only to see the work given away and a cheap generic used instead. Ever thought this through moron?

[GiveMeFreedom]

You are serious with your assertions, correct?

Republicans are in the pockets of rich corporations and democrats all care about the little guy right?

I can see that Carville has succeeded in building the idiot. We have arrived.

[babooph]

Not enough republicans -No problem,the lobbyists just bribe the dems-must be what they call "democracy"!

[jsd330]

Let's not stop with for profit healthcare, why not make every business in th U.S. non profit. We could start with all insurance companies(auto,home,life, ect.) then the oil companies, electric companies, natural gas companies, grocery stores ect. How long would it be before evry buisnes in the U.S. was run by the government. then we can become a socialist country.