Are We Americans Finally Beginning to Wake Up?

Arlen Spector and former Kansas Governor Sebelius ran into a buzzsaw at a public meeting in Pennsylvania on the issue of healthcare reform yesterday. It could be the opening salvo to what members of the Congress and Obama administration in general are going to hear from constituents during the August recess. I certainly hope so, because I cannot understand how thinking people can like the reform ideas being put forth by Congress and the administration, unless they are truly socialists.

Specific parts of the plans now under consideration that are truly bothersome are the public option and the total absence of any thought to rein in costs through tort reform. I have no doubt that the public option is simply a step toward total single-payer, government healthcare and elimination of private insurance plans. There are an insufficient number of doctors and healthcare professionals now let alone to cover an additional 46 million people which can mean only one thing...rationing and reduced quality of care.

Before deciding how to cover the uninsured, an indepth analysis needs to be made of who the uninsured are. We know that somewhere between 12 and 20 million are illegal aliens, but what about those who do not have coverage by choice? Among the remainder, how many can be put on Medicaid? The rest would then constitute the hard core of people needing a special program.
The illegal aliens will continue posing a problem until we come to grips with the overall issue of immigration reform.


Socialized Healthcare

Socialized healthcare would put the country on its final mile to the end of the democratic roadway. The vast majority of Americans would have to stand in line just to see a doctor. Let me correct that statement...they would first have to stand in line to speak with a medical assistant otherwise known as a government bureaucrat who would decide whether or not to put you in the line to see a doctor. Then if you're lucky enough to see a doctor, the chances are he or she will put you on a waiting list for any treatment beyond an aspirin tablet. All of this will be necessary because there will not be enough doctors to take care of everyone in a timely fashion.

Proponents of healthcare reform accuse opponents of using scare tactics to kill reform. Proponents are having great difficulty proving their case because polls show nearly 85% of our citizens are pleased with their health insurance and don't want to lose it to a half baked public option.

As someone on a recent talkshow said: "The next 8 weeks will be the most important period of time for the nation in the last 100 years!" We had better believe it!