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CONTACT: Physicians for a National Health Program Mark Almberg, (312) 782-6006 |
Obama Should Seize Moment to Push for Medicare for All, Doctors' Group Says
Dr. Quentin Young comments on Massachusetts election, next steps for health reform
- January 22 - A spokesman for a national physicians' group says it would be a mistake for President Obama to conclude from Tuesday's vote in Massachusetts that he needs to "tack more toward the right," as some pundits have advised, or to aim for a scaled-back set of piecemeal reforms. Instead, the spokesman says, the president and Congress should immediately move to expand the popular Medicare program to cover everyone.
"President Obama and Congress should seize this moment to change course and re-inspire the U.S. public with a plan that is simple, clear, workable, fiscally responsible, comprehensive and truly universal -- namely, single-payer Medicare for All," said Dr. Quentin Young, national coordinator of Physicians for a National Health Program.
Young dismissed suggestions by some that the House should adopt the Senate bill as it presently reads, send it to the president's desk, and have Congress improve upon it later. "The Senate bill is rotten," he said. "It's a huge financial handout to the for-profit insurers and big drug companies. If passed, it will still leave at least 20 million uninsured and millions more unable to afford the care they need.
"Yesterday's Supreme Court decision removing bans on corporate contributions in candidate elections will only make this fatally flawed bill even more difficult to improve upon," he said. "It's too laden with concession after concession to the private health industry to serve as a starting point."
"Instead, we need to start anew and build on a system that we know works well, is cost-efficient and that could quickly be extended to cover everybody," Young said. "That's the Medicare program, which was implemented within one year of its enactment in 1965 and now covers about 45 million people, mainly seniors and the totally disabled."
"Extending Medicare to cover the entire population would result in $400 billion savings annually by eliminating the administrative waste -- the unnecessary paperwork and bureaucracy -- inflicted on the U.S. economy by the private health insurers," he said. "That would be enough to ensure high-quality coverage for everybody."
Young said it would be a mistake to interpret the election of Republican Scott Brown to the late Sen. Edward Kennedy's seat as a rejection by voters of fundamental health reform. Many independents and Democrats voted for Brown or stayed home because of mounting economic insecurity and their belief that the health reform process led by the Democrats had been corrupted by the big insurance and drug companies, he said. Union voters were especially angry with the proposed excise tax on workers' health plans.
"It was more of a protest vote," he said.
Young pointed to a 2008 ballot initiative in 10 legislative districts in Massachusetts, including one that overlaps with Brown's state senatorial district, that asked voters if they support "legislation creating a cost-effective, single-payer health insurance system that is available to all residents, and oppose laws penalizing those who fail to obtain health insurance," i.e. an individual mandate.
"Seventy-three percent of Massachusetts voters in these districts voted for a single-payer program and against the individual mandate, a hallmark of their own state's plan," Young said. "The Massachusetts plan is now in financial trouble. It's fair to assume that those who voted this way in 2008, like many others in exit polls this week, believe the bills in Congress don't go far enough toward real reform."
"Nationwide," he said, "polls show about two-thirds of the U.S. population would favor a Medicare-for-All approach, and a solid majority of physicians now support efforts to establish national health insurance."
Young also pointed to the robust movement in several states, including California and Vermont, where physicians, among others, are pressing for single payer at the state level.
Nearly 1,000 health professional students and their allies rallied on the steps of the State Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., on Jan. 11, in support of S.B. 810, a single-payer bill that was reintroduced Thursday in the Legislature, he said. Similar bills were approved twice by California lawmakers in recent years, only to be vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
In Vermont, some 300 citizens bearing thousands of petition signatures flooded the chambers of the State Capitol in Montpelier on Jan. 12, calling for enactment of a similar proposal there. Many participants said the national bills were completely inadequate to address the state's urgent health care needs, Young said.
A bold policy shift to single payer on the national level is more plausible than many people think, given the public's support for such an approach, he said, and given the Medicare program's "44-year track record of proven success."
Whatever deficiencies the Medicare program presently has could be easily remedied in a streamlined, better-funded single-payer system, he said. "In fact, single-payer Medicare for All would yield enormous efficiencies and savings through measures like bulk buying and negotiated fees, benefiting everyone and making the program sustainable for future generations. It would also be a much-needed boon to our economy."
"The president and Congress, if they truly stand up against the insurance and drug companies and press for single-payer Medicare for All, will find a public and a medical community ready and willing to support them," he said.
21 Comments so far
Show AllExpecting a corporate lackey such as Obama (along with most of Congress) to do anything which might cut into future earnings of his corporate masters is utterly unrealistic.
Those who disappoint the corporate/Pentagon elite who run things often pay the full price: JFK, MLK, RFK, Paul Wellstone, etc.
Obama wants to retire young and very, very wealthy, with much compensation from his puppet masters.
Neither major party gives a damn about most of us, so stop expecting them to make even little ripples.
"President Obama and Congress should seize this moment..."
You know who should be seizing the moment--any and all groups that proport to be for national singlepayer should be zeroing in on Massachusetts and instead of just a ballot initiative the focus should be on building a real grass roots effort around the sentiments and frustrations evidenced by that ballot initiative to grow a national movement on.
It's time to quit pleading the case for singlepayer to the elected and start organizing the ones who do the electing.
But as far as I know, nobody's doing nothing. As usual.
I bet the issue of healthcare reform now gets buried in "state by state" efforts designed not to hurt Democrats.
Nobody's doing nothing? Did you even read the press release? Do you have any idea how long and hard various groups, such as the California Nurses Association and many, many others across the country, have struggled around this issue?
Start by checking out this video of the recent California single-payer rally, mentioned in the press release:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NAnzAlIWi0 .
I don't know where you live, Greg, but here in the western half of Wash. state, there are several groups from various towns, meeting regularly and working together on multiple fronts toward single payer. They are listed here: http://www.unitedforsinglepayer.org/ .
For a long, though incomplete, list of groups around the U.S., go here:
http://www.singlepayeraction.org/resources.html .
We ARE organizing, Greg. Please join us!
Living in San Diego, oh, I've been to some of the meetings libby--and some rallies.
I can't attest to how things are in Washington state but I'm willing to guess things are not that different there then they are down here. Take the "recent California single-payer rally" you mention sponsored by OneCare. Not too long ago I used to go to OneCare meetings here in San Diego. Then when Obama got elected they magically turned into a support Obama and the Democrats meetings.
It wouldn't be the last time an ostensibly "Single Payer" meeting I attended turned out not to be for SinglePayer at all.
I went to a Socialists for Single Payer meeting and one of the persons giving the meeting tells me she works WITH Democrats.
Just last October I was at a Single Payer meeting where a PNHP doc who despite giving a pretty good slide show on single payer kept telling a fairly large crowd that nothing was going to happen with healthcare reform for another 3 years. Of the other two people in charge of the meeting--one told us her most recent action for singlepayer was a protest with SEIU (who are not for SinglePayer and who were really at that particular rally protesting Republican Arnold). The other person in charge of the meeting gave this convoluted definition of what singlepayer means (which I've since learned is the same as T.R Reid's definition of healthcare reform in his most recent book--and is also not single payer). So when I raised my hand and asked why don't you just say singlepayer is about getting the profit-motive out, he responded that that's not going to happen.
I've heard there is a group that holds signs for single payer down at the I-5 on ramp Saturday mornings--at 8am. But not at the office of the military-spending Democrat member of Congress where I held my sign during rush hour. And far as I know, that on ramp hasn't supported one piece of legislation opposed to singlepayer. Nor have the all-night partiers trying to keep four eyes on the road on their way home Saturday mornings.
So yeah, I've been to the single payer meetings and rallies and the sense I get with these activists--and others like those in the war rallies I've gone to--is that they are not so much about singlepayer or any particular issue as they are for protecting the financial prospects of the Democratic Party.
That's why I think any prospect of health reform will get buried by Democrats in their state by state strategy.
As for singlepayeraction, near as I can tell, they really are for getting rid of the insurance companies--but where's the frigin' action? Especially right now following Massachusetts. You would think they'd be trying to build on that momentum. You'd think they would have already planned on it--they knew something was up. But instead, nothing. It's all quiet over there.
Like I wrote before, no one is trying to engage the larger population for singlepayer. At least not that I can tell--and if I, as someone interested in singlepayer can't tell, then how is someone with even less exposure to singlepayer going to be able to tell and possibly take part?
Phew!
Now that Greg has absolved himself of all responsibility, I will say to those who are interested in taking on a more active role -- please do join us. Like all civil rights struggles, it will be a long one. And will require considerable determination of all involved to stay on course.
like I was saying,
Phew!!
Yea man! The Mass. vote was clearly a rejection of the Senate bill. Obama could win immediately if he were to propose the single payer alternative (medicare expansion now.
I have a lot of respect for the Physicians for a National Health Program. They are mostly young idealistic medical students, residents and new doctors. They have been working as hard as they can for years now to get a single payer system.
I agree that they would be wise to focus on the electorate at this point, and not on Obama, but that job just became a Sisyphean task with the Supreme Court ruling this week giving corporations the right to spend unlimited amounts of money on their political causes. It is hard to imagine how these young doctors, or anyone else, will be able to be heard above the corporate din and spin now.
"It is hard to imagine how these young doctors, or anyone else, will be able to be heard above the corporate din and spin now."
forget about all the young doctors, or anyone else---what are you doing for singlepayer?
I love the PNHP--I have a family member who is a PNHP physician, I support Medicare for all, but do they really think Obama will "seize" anything at this juncture?
What's sad is Obama would not even give these fine doctors the time of day.He's too busy shilling for the AMA, Pig Pharma and the insurance cartel.
My hope for "change" is just about dead...................
I question whether they are mostly young and idealistic medical students, residents and new doctors. Judging from the age and experience level of Quentin Young (young at heart, maybe) and some others pictured at their site. Plus, I have been acquainted with a number of older physicians who take their position. As well as older, and very hard working and dedicated clinic and emergency doctors who see how our system is failing in the lowest rungs of our society.
Since all things are not equal under our laws.
Lastly, a peer viewed study showed that 59% of American physicians suppport a single payer Medicare for All model. With support much higher depending on which branch of medicine they're in.
Why they're not all joining one of everyone's favorite organizations, I dunno. Maybe it's politics. But, you know, you can contact them for physician referrals in your area if you prefer a doctor, at the very least, intelligent and humane and sane enough to discern that single payer is the way to go.
Seems our President may have ... since their family physician (whether or not he's a member) supports single payer.
Obama should threaten to veto this messy health care bill and force congress to start all over - this time listening to their angry voters. Then O would get some well needed respect.
One thing that never gets mentioned is how our present programs are working. I have a handicapped brother who is on Medicare and Medicaid. Moved from New York to California. Most doctors here will not take his insurance. It is extremely difficult to find doctors that take it. The result is to take him to a clinic where he will see whoever is available. He needs an endocrinologist - but none near where I live will take his insurance - the only alternative being to go to a hospital some distance away.
Since the Corporate Coup has taken over this government we might just as well ask for Free Universal Healthcare. And Bread and Circuses too!
"Now that Greg has absolved himself of all responsibility..."
--libby's comment
The "responsible" and the "irresponsible:"
"All these years he had heard responsible men who weren't being quite honest--radio announcers who soft-soaped, speakers who were fools, and wares that were trash, and who canaryishly chirped "Thank you, Major Blister" when they would rather have kicked Major Blister, preachers who did not believe the decayed doctrines they dealt out, doctors who did not dare tell lady invalids that they were sex-hungry exhibitionists, merchants who peddled brass for gold--heard all of them complacently excuse themselves by explaining that they were too old to change and that they had "a wife and family to support."
"I don't like all these irresponsible attacks on us bankers all the time. Of course, Senator Windrip has to pretend publicly to bawl the banks out, but once he gets into power he'll give the banks their proper influence in the administration and take our expert financial advice. Yes. Why are you so afraid of the word 'Fascism,' Doremus? Just a word--just a word! And might not be so bad, with all the lazy bums we got panhandling relief nowadays..."
http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks03/0301001h.html
This is a most interesting set of comments, including exchanges of opinions.
Chelsey, as your statment about hope implies, not much has happened relatively speaking. But plenty can and will happen. Obama won't seize anything untill we do what Obama insisted that we must do (4/3/2007).
nosurrender, YES, you can imagine. You can have a Vision. This can and will happen.
gregsdiary, I compliment you strongly for speaking out. Fortunately, an occasional individual like you has
clearly stated, as you have, what is really happening (relatively nothing that has any impact) compared to what can and will happen (massive activity that will get us Medicare for All).
As nosurrender so wisely indicated, the focus must be on the education of the people ... individuals and small groups. Must be. Can be. Will be.
The necessary legislation (H.R. 676) for Medicare for All needs 70-80% support level in the House and in the Senate. Why? The legislation needs to have the full focus in order to have the best legislation written for this important law about our health.
"Nearly 1,000 ... in Sacramento, Calif." and " ... In Vermont, some 300 citizens bearing thousands of petition signatures ..." Those kinds of numbers at events will increase with a plan of action called "knowledge and numbers."
We need and will have 250,000 for a California event. We need 50,000 for a Vermont event. But those will NOT be "THE" numbers, only a small portion of the numbers. The real numbers can and will be millions. The 250,000 and 50,000 who simply show up for specific events. That will easily happen from the larger group of millions. Although I refer to "single-payer movement" often, Rep. Dennis Kucinich made it very clear on Sept 9 and 10, 2009, that he does not see any movement. He will see a massive movement.
Masses of individual Americans can and will have a habit of talking among each other about what Medicare for All, single-payer, is, what its benefits are and how to get it. The knowledge level will increase. They will encourage each other to sign up to stand up for single-payer and participate. The number of participants signing up will increase to a million and beyond. We can and will get Medicare for All.
Keep the faith, Chelsey, it's time for us to make our move.
Bob the Health and Health Care Advocate
Million Letters for Health Care campaign
http://www.medicareforall.org
hey Bob,
I really liked the "Exile" video you have on your site. It reminded me of the exiles aboard the SS Exodus 1947--except they didn't have the good fortune to have the protection of their human rights.
We do.
While you were definitely ahead of the curve back in 2007, the problem with petitions and letters and such these days is that we're definitely past that.
And those kinds of actions don't really reach the level of civil disobedience I think is necessary.
I'd like to do something a bit more visual--like that video--except I'd want to have it filled with a gathering of those suffering from our country's health insurance nightmare who still have the heart and determination to take action--like those onboard the Exodus--and make a memorable and manifestly clear picture in people's minds what happens when you allow people's health to be bartered for profit.
If it takes a boat load of the sick, in bandages, casts and crutches, hopping sans prosthetic limbs, in wheel chairs and hospital gurneys--with IVs attached! to make that point--so be it.
The doctors, nurses, councelors etc. who work in the medical field, who see the presenlty anonymous sufferers of today's healthcare day in and day out, could be helpful finding those suitable and willing to take such action.
Because when it comes to for-profit healthcare, everyone's in exile--and the only way back is by becoming the 'uninvisible.'
Now there's the heart and makings of a movement.
Common Dreams, you have apparently changed what works and what does not work for html (???) ... such as removing html processing?
So, moderator, please delete this comment that is now clutter.
Bob the Health and Health Care Advocate
Million Letters for Health Care campaign
Medicare for All
http://www.medicareforall.org
It's always fun to read articles like this. I find it fascinating that there are still gullible suckers that think president OCL (Odious Corporate Lawnjockey) ever had any intention of helping the ordinary citizen, or can be motivated in any way to do so. Nothing can motivate him to improve healthcare because his masters include the health care industry. But that's ok, keep these articles coming. We can all use a good laugh.
I appreciate the comments supporting Medicare for all. Evidently whatever logic led in the 1960's to establishing Medicare for the elderly and disabled hasn't worked to lower the age limit to 55, as was briefly proposed recently, let alone cover everyone.
Conservatives are fond of saying the U.S. has good statistics with regard to certain conditions, like heart disease and cancer, compared even with nations that have universal coverage. However, I suspect the conditions the U.S. does well on are primarily covered by the current Medicare program. I don't know if anyone has done a study on that; it would be helpful to publicize it more, if it's been done.
The conservatives haven't effectively rebutted the statistic that 45,000 people (fifteen times the death toll from 9/11, 4.5 times the annual death toll from murders) die prematurely in the U.S. every year due to inability to purchase health care. Obama, to my knowledge, has never referred to that fact, which to me is without doubt the most compelling and logical reason to scrap the system we now have.
If we don't go for single payer, we're obviously wasting too much time and energy on the GWOT, because the losses from that are too small to bother with, even if we get a few more 9/11's. Or look at it this way: if we switched all the money being spent on the GWOT into Medicare for all, we'd save a lot of lives. We could then let non-military heroes in the GWOT, like the guy that jumped on Abdulmutallab, the people aboard Flight 93, the cop who shot Hassan, etc., do the job.