The thing is that you don't really know that. It would take a long time for a public option to usurp the entirety of providing health coverage, but to say that it could never happen is a little silly. That is why there are some people against a public option...the fear that the word "option" would evaporate over time.
The only way "option" would evaporate is if the private companies kept raising premiums higher with poorer service. If this is the case what is wrong with going to a better system? I do believe that unless the public option is hamstrung that for those who want low cost coverage will gravitate to the public option, that the private insurers with their higher overhead,marketing and health CEO huge salaries can't keep up. Maybe it will be a little bit like social security and IRA's, those that have more money can pay for expensive additonal private insurance. I believe this is the case in most of the national health care countries.
That is when corporations that are run well get "lean and mean." That is, of course, a cute way of saying that they will lay off a portion of their workforce and slash salaries and benefits of those who remain. They could start with executive bonuses. What a radical notion.
I have not heard one single proposal of how to ensure that in any of the various bills. If I am wrong on that, please forgive me...and educate me. I would love to know about that provision. See...some conservatives are willing to listen and learn from others. Refreshing, eh?
Why isn't she on disability? And if she is a school teacher, I think schools, or really any employer, cannot discriminate because she disability correct? I am pretty sure that is the law.
She's not being discriminated against by the school. She has to quit her job because her disability is degenerative and her job involves chasing small children around. She's getting fitted for leg braces and is probably ultimately bound for a wheelchair. She's just unable to do the job any longer. The school's not obligated to keep her on for a job she can no longer do. All she wants is affordable insurance. But because she has a pre-existing condition, no insurance company will let her buy any. There are countless people in a similar situation. We need reform so the insurance companies will be forced to provide affordable coverage to ALL Americans, not just the healthy ones.
I hope like hell the word "option" evaporates. That would mean we'd join the vast majority of the civilized west and have single payer. It is unpatriotic to insist on a system that favors profit over decent care for all American citizens. I know this seems like a radical idea (in this country), but profit should have no place in a system that provides health care to our citizens.
More... I think we should be talking about (almost completely) single payer with a private option to accommodate those who can afford super premium coverage. If someone wants to pay exorbitant prices to private companies for cadillac policies, I don't have a problem with that. But Congress has it backwards: that should be the "option." The primary concern should be insuring ALL Americans at an affordable price and it should be illegal to discriminate against sick people. We don't do that to victims of crime or fire and we sure as hell shouldn't do it to sick people. The fact that this is even up for debate is completely disgusting.
Be very careful what you wish for. Remember, our society (not just government and not just the private sector) is all about cutting corners. I envision a system where a public option and private insurance create a checks and balances type system. The public option sets a minimum standard of care for a low price. The private insurers cannot fall beneath the public option standard of care or nobody will buy their product. My fear is that without a private insurance industry, the public option will be the only game in town. We could then end up with a level of care indicative of a monopoly...decreasing levels of care and increasing cost. Not unlike what we have now.
That's not necessary in my case. Two of my best friends died in the last two years. Primary cause of death: no access to health insurance. And they couldn't get it because of pre-existing conditions. My friends are dead because the private insurance industry didn't believe it could make money off of them. Single payer would never be like the current system, because profits wouldn't be at issue and there would be no bonuses for denying coverage. "Not unlike what we have now?" Sorry, but that's bull. Under a non-profit health care system my friends might be alive today.
via TPM -- From the new Times/CBS poll out this evening ... "Would you favor or oppose the government offering everyone a government administered health insurance plan -- something like the Medicare coverage that people 65 and older get -- that would compete with private health insurance plans?" Favor 65% Oppose 26% Interestingly, according to the poll, support for a public option has jumped 5 points since late August and opposition to it has dropped 8 points.
Yeah I am pretty sure they would be. I seriously doubt she was fired. You cannot fire a teacher because she is now in a wheelchair. I think she is mad at the wrong system.
That is how the rest of the modern world works. Ultimately that is what will have to happen otherwise costs will keep going up.
I think we'll go bankrupt before a public official will decrease levels of care. Politicians think of long term survival, and that would be juicy ammo in elections.
You need help with reading comprehension. She wasn't fired; she quit because she was no longer able to do the job. And she is "mad" because the current system allows greedy insurance companies to discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions. You fail as usual.
ha. good luck not going bankrupt trying to give cheap health insurance to everyone. the general public are idiots, whose main problems are self inflicted.
Why did she quit? It is the law that they have to make reasonable accommodations. She is mad at the wrong system. Her problem should be with the school for not helping her or the Dept of Labor. She obviously wants to work so why did she quit?
We aren't in her shoes. It's hard to do a job of work when you're struggling doing simple, everyday things that most people take for granted. That's one of the difficult aspects of blogging on the internet. Something that could be easily communicated in person and understood doesn't always translate. A person can be in a great deal of pain, for example, and still write paragraphs about Afghanistan. Who would really know?
Yeah I know what you mean. But she is saying she wants to work. Wants to start a workshop and other projects. So if she wants to work, they have to create an environment she can work in.
