Perhaps you were as fortunate as I to receive an e-mail from President Obama regarding health care reform. If not, I will share what I received at the conclusion of my comments regarding health care reform. There has been a lot of discussion surrounding this topic and lots of media coverage. I am left asking the question, will we really see true health care reform or is this just a shell game for the federal government? I am interested in others opinions. What do you think?
And now, the President of the United States:
The White House, Washington
Good afternoon,
You are receiving this email because you signed up at WhiteHouse.gov. My staff and I plan to use these messages as a way to directly communicate about important issues and opportunities, and today I have some encouraging updates about health care reform. The Vice President and I just met with leaders from the House of Representatives and received their commitment to pass a comprehensive health care reform bill by July 31.
We also have an unprecedented commitment from health care industry leaders, many of whom opposed health reform in the past. Monday, I met with some of these health care stakeholders, and they pledged to do their part to reduce the health care spending growth rate, saving more than two trillion dollars over the next ten years — around $2,500 for each American family. Then on Tuesday, leaders from some of America’s top companies came to the White House to showcase innovative ways to reduce health care costs by improving the health of their workers.
Now the House and Senate are beginning a critical debate that will determine the health of our nation’s economy and its families. This process should be transparent and inclusive and its product must drive down costs, assure quality and affordable health care for everyone, and guarantee all of us a choice of doctors and plans.
Reforming health care should also involve you. Think of other people who may want to stay up to date on health care reform and other national issues and tell them to join us here:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/EmailUpdates
Health care reform can’t come soon enough. We spend more on health care than any country, but families continue to struggle with skyrocketing premiums and nearly 46 million are without insurance entirely. It is a priority for the American people and a pillar of the new foundation we are seeking to build for our economy.
We’ll continue to keep you posted about this and other important issues.
Thank you,
Barack Obama
P.S. If you’d like to get more in-depth information about health reform and how you can participate, be sure to visit http://www.HealthReform.gov
#1 by Jackie on August 4th, 2009
More concerning than anything for me in considering the push for healthcare reform is the inaccurate data the current administration continues to use in sensationalizing this issue. Despite evidence to the contrary by private sector non partisan groups and our own Census Bureau statistics, the Democratic Congress continue to promote this myth of 47 millions uninsured Americans. The true number of the uninsured is 10-15 million, in my humble opinion this is not a reason to destroy the best healthcare system in the world.
Mark Levin, in his essential book Liberty And Tyranny, explains:
“It is said by the proponents of government-run health care that 47 million people go without health care in the United States. For example, during the so-called Cover the Uninsured Week event in 2008, Democrat Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi issued a statement declaring that this is the “time to reaffirm our commitment to access to quality, affordable health care for every American, including the 47 million who live in fear of even a minor illness because they lack health insurance…In the wealthiest nation on earth, it is scandalous that a single working American or a young child must face life without the economic security of health coverage.” This is more deceit.
In 2006, the Census Bureau reported that there were 46.6 million people without health insurance. About 9.5 million were not United States citizens. Another 17 million lived in households with incomes exceeding $50,000 a year and could, presumably, purchase their own health care coverage. Eighteen million of the 46.6 million uninsured were between the ages of eighteen and thirty-four, most of whom were in good health and not necessarily in need of health-care coverage or chose not to purchase it. Moreover, only 30 percent of the nonelderly population who became uninsured in a given year remained uninsured for more than twelve months. Almost 50 percent regained their health coverage within four months. The 47 million “uninsured” figure used by Pelosi and others is widely inaccurate.”
Another major area of concern for me is the reality of health care rationing, which is inevitable with a single payer system. The only way to reduce cost in a single payer system is to ration healthcare. Rationing health care means getting value for the money we are spending by setting limits on which treatments should be paid. I do not want a government bureaucrat deciding on the value of extending my fathers life by paying for his treatment vs. paying for the treatment of a younger person who has not paid into the system his / her whole life.
I believe in personal responsibility. I am afforded the choice of which health plan is best for my family by my employer sponsored group insurance. If I were to lose my job, I would have the option of electing COBRA or paying for an individual policy. I do not believe it is not compassionate to make people dependent on the government.
I hear people say it’s a complicated issue, but for me its really not. I expect my elected officials to actually take the time to read this legislation over the next month and to listen to the people who elected them to office. For what its worth, those are my thoughts.