Obama Healthcare Plan - With Sugar Coating

When I was a child, my mother gave me some really horrible home remedy "medicine" for a childhood ailment. It was the most bitter, vile-tasting liquid on earth. So, her method of delivery was to put a few drops of it in a spoonful of granulated sugar and make me take it under the threat that my father would hold me down and force my mouth open if I didn't comply. Holding my nose because it also had an indescribably bad smell, I ultimately gave in and swallowed it. But even though there was much more sugar than liquid, it still was horrible tasting, and the sugar made it only a little easier to swallow. Why she felt her treatment was better for me than what the doctor would have prescribed was known only to her and a few others who believed in that type of home remedies.

This reminds me of what is going on with the Obamacare issue. There are portions - the drops of liquid - of the healthcare debate that are non-negotiables to the liberals in this proposed healthcare legislation. (And these are laid out in HR3200 which is a "pattern" piece of legislation from which everyone else is developing their own plans.) HR3200 spells out exactly what the far left is wanting to see in this healthcare reform package. So, it doesn't matter how much sugar-coating is done, it still has a very bad taste. I don't care how Obama shrouds the "liquid drops" of his universal healthcare in his carefully selected words, it still stinks. My real-life example may actually be a metaphor for what we will see if the Democrats proceed with the Ratification process.

I'm not against healthcare reform. I believe there are things that need to be changed about the healthcare system. I just differ with our legislators on what it is that needs to be changed. It makes more sense to me, as it does to many others, to reform the areas that are not working rather than dumping everything including the things that are working well in favor of a totally new healthcare system at a huge cost - regardless of what politicians say. I’m smart enough to see that if the “upfront” costs for the new plan don’t come directly from out of pocket expenses and insurance premiums, we still will have to make up the difference wherever cuts have been made. There’s nothing free in this world. Everything costs something!

There are legislators and doctors in Canada and in the UK who are saying that America's healthcare system is the best there is. To adopt the healthcare systems similar to these two countries is to go down the wrong path. They will tell you that this type of healthcare has failed in their countries. So, why are our politicians hell-bent on pushing this through. Simple answer. It's greed! It's a way to line their pockets, and a way to gain favor with the few at the expense of the many.

Below are some oversimplified suggestions that will lead to the kind of reform that I believe most Americans would prefer to see. At least it’s a place to start and which can be implemented without totally dismantling our present system. If these suggestions do not become part of the legislation, and Congress does create a new healthcare system, we can be assured we’ll have a socialistic plan that is of less quality than 90% of Americans presently have now

1.  Stop frivolous lawsuits and absurd settlements and jury awards.

2.  Shorten the patent terms for drug companies and open market to generic drug competition.

4.  Require an open playing field for health insurance companies across state lines.

4.  Make it possible to have affordable insurance offered on an individual basis rather than through employers.

5.  Establish fair parameters for covering people with pre-existing conditions.

The real problem with our healthcare problems is unadulterated greed, plain and simple. It’s not that we don’t have adequate quality care. In fact, 90% of Americans have good or excellent healthcare.  Here’s a thought: perhaps the other 10% could be considered "a group" and offered affordable group healthcare insurance for at least catastrophic coverage.

And again, why do you suppose our legislators don't listen to those who have experienced the type of healthcare that is being proposed when those people are saying it’s no good?  It’s called graft. It’s what is putting money in the pockets of our legislators and is what keeps them in power.  Washington, DC is never going to do anything about it on their own. Therefore, it’s up to the citizens to expose it and to keep attention on it until the pressure affects change.

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(Side Note: Americans didn't like the new Coca-Cola either! Remember what happened? If we who do not want this socialistic healthcare, we must stand strong and we will prevail!)