Obviously the big health insurance companies! And they’re spending enormous sums of our money to convince all of us that a Single-Payer system would be terrible for us. That’s right! They take a healthy chunk of the money we pay them for our health care and use it to prevent us from getting a better system.
Gee, does that seem a little like paying the local fire department to burn our houses down?
Anytime I see a big, rich industry spending huge money to promote a view, my antenna goes up. It is my cue to look deeper and not to trust the sound bites we have mostly been conned into relying on for our world view.
30% of our health care money goes to the insurance companies. What do we get for that money? We get a small amount of administrative service that could be done even by a mediocre government department, at least as well for a fraction of that money.
What else do we get for all that money?
• More than 45 million Americans at risk because they can’t get coverage from the insurance companies;
• We get to pay for all the people who wind up in the emergency rooms at far greater cost and with much poorer outcomes because they can’t get coverage;
• Ongoing fear that if we need extensive care the insurance companies will find a way to deny us the benefits we have already paid for;
• “Satisfaction” in knowing that the insurance executives are enjoying the good life at our expense;
In recent Congressional hearings on the subject it was established beyond any doubt that the insurance companies routinely find unethical and even illegal means to deny coverage to their paying clients whenever there are significant medical expenses to be covered.
It is interesting to note, that despite the huge lobbying and propaganda efforts to convince us otherwise, the current Medicare system does not do this. They cover what they are supposed to. To be sure, the system is not perfect. There is plenty of room for improvements. However, if I had a choice between Medicare and Blue Shield, for example, I would take Medicare any day. And if you see through the huge lobbying efforts put forth by the insurance companies, you would almost certainly make the same choice.
Of course the insurance companies are fighting all out to maintain their current parasitical position in the market. They get to rake off BILLIONS of our dollars for giving us NADA. To add insult to injury, the insurance companies are using the very money they are ripping off from us to keep us from even learning what is in our best interest. Like I said, anytime I want to know what is really in my interest I follow the money.
Our health care system is one of the more important issues that may get decided soon. And it is one where if enough of us dig in and get the real information, below the surface of the fear mongering and the glitzy sound bites, and then take action on what we learn, we could make a real difference.
Oh, and for those who say that a government run single payer system will have too many problems that can never be fixed, I have a simple answer: Include in any health care system reform legislation that all members of Congress must use whatever system they legislate for the rest of us. How soon do you think the bugs would be fixed, then?
To your health, and your health freedom!