"Medicare Is the Answer, Not the Problem"

MARGARET FLOWERS, M.D., mdpnhp at gmail.com
Flowers is congressional fellow for the 18,000-member Physicians for a National Health Program. She has written recently: "Medicare Is the Answer, Not the Problem. Both Democrats and Republicans are missing the point by putting the emphasis on controlling Medicare and Medicaid costs without effectively addressing the reasons for our rising health care costs. Rather than embracing the Republican rhetoric which blames our public insurances, Democrats would do well to call out the real reason for our health care spending crisis: our current fragmented and profit-driven model, and advocate for a national improved Medicare for all."

Flowers said today: "Watching the actions in D.C. is like watching the same political theater we have seen for each important issue. The crisis, real or manufactured, becomes an excuse to pretend to fight over the solutions, all the while continuing to move towards greater austerity measures for necessities such as health care, housing, education, jobs and pensions.

"Saturday will be Medicare's 46th birthday. Who would have thought that a Democratic president would be so willing to cut both of our important social insurances, Medicare and Social Security, knowing that real people will suffer and lose their lives as a result?

"We must address the root causes of the direction this country is headed, corporatism and militarism, through unity and mass acts of resistance. We will not email or elect ourselves out of this situation. That is why I am part of the October2011 Movement. I urge others to join us at october2011.org."