President Obama has called for sweeping health care reform and charged Congress with coming up with a program for it. It's a good idea but it's important to expect a tough political fight.
One of the biggest issues is whether or not to include a new public plan option to compete with private insurance plans. Many Republicans dismiss it as “government-run health care” and a step toward “socialized medicine.” Democrats find the idea inviting.
A new public plan — to offer citizens more choices, keep the private plans honest and, one can hope, restrain the relentless growth in health care premiums and medical costs — seems worth trying.
Any new public plan would constitute only part of a much broader effort to provide coverage for 46 million Americans who are uninsured and many more who may soon also be uninsured. Other major parts under discussion include strengthening employer-provided coverage, expanding existing public programs like Medicaid and creating a national health insurance exchange where people without employer coverage, small businesses and possibly others could buy policies at inexpensive group rates from qualified private plans and from a new public plan.
I for one, find President Obama's job bill to be a step in the right direction. There is something seriously wrong with the healthcare system in the US right now, and it needs to be fixed.
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