Capital Sources: A Father's Call for Health-Care Reform
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A Colorado father journeyed to Washington to plead for health-care reform on behalf of his chronically ill son.
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Many people agree that America&#39;s health-care system needs fixing. Few agree on how to fix it. During last week&#39;s debate and in a flurry of political ads that will become more intense as the Nov.
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Public health costs (Medicaid) are undermining development prospects for many state in the USA. In the state of Pennsylvania, 25% of its $51 billion budget will be dedicated to health care for the less well off.
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Yesterday's piece on health care and the presidential election got a great response, and some of it from Republicans, using the slogans and logic I hoped they wouldn't. But that's okay, it helps me focus my rhetoric on the precise point of disagreement, and hopefully by illuminating it, I can either convince some of the Republicans to come over to my side, or help eliminate some of the confusion on both sides. Or maybe it'll just keep the argument from slopping over into all kinds of irrelevant issues. The basic Republican argument goes like this. Why should I pay for the health needs of people who are so irresponsible as to not have health insurance.  If I got it wrong, please set me straight. Now I'd like to answer this, very carefully. The Democrats aren't proposing that you should pay for the uninsured. Key point. They either agree with you, or know that they're not going to get their proposal passed unless they take this into account. The Obama plan says you don't get care unless you have insurance. His proposal aims to get a lot more people insured. Clinton goes one step further, by requiring everyone to have health insurance.  Also, you already pay for the health needs of the uninsured. Whether you or I like it, we don't look the other way when someone is in need. You may feel the system should work differently, but that's not responsive to the proposal the Democrats are making. The debate is how health care works for the non-indigent.  If you have property, a car, a house, or if your kids go to private school or college, or if you want to take a vacation, or have a baby, or exercise between jobs, getting sick without insurance is a sure way to go from being middle class to being poor, quickly. This is why we have health insurance, to smoothe out the risk, to protect our family's lifestyle. It seems to me it's a good thing. It's the market solving a basic human need.  So this is what we should be discussing, how can we get insurance for all the people who want it, or should we require it for everyone -- this is the debate of 2008. This is what the Democrats are putting on the table, and what McCain, or whoever is the Republican nominee, will have to respond to, if we're going to have the respectful debate everyone is talking about having.  Why is this such a problem?  A lot of people, even healthy people without pre-existing conditions, can't get health insurance. And what if you have a pre-existing condition? Do you really think it's cool for the insurance industry to refuse them coverage? Why is that a good thing? I honestly don't get it. Consider the penalty for not having insurance. (See above.) So far the leaders of the Republican Party have managed to keep health care off the national agenda, but this year, it's there. If you doubt me, just ask a few people you know, and don't just ask poor people or Democrats, ask Republicans. Disease isn't a party issue, and while poor people tend to have poorer health, even well-off people need health care. And most people can't afford to pay for a catastrophic illness, and enough of them can't get health insurance to make this an important national issue. If you disagree with this, please let me know why. PS: Phil Windley asks where it stops. Should we provide free housing for the homeless? And what about free cable TV for people without cable TV? (He provides other examples.) No, this is only about health insurance. It's not about any of the other things mentioned in Phil's post.
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At some point in life every American enters through the doors of a hospital. Health care is a connection that can&#39;t be avoided which makes it a crucial issue in the presidential campaign.
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HALIFAX (CP) - Giving family doctors more support by spreading out the burden of primary care is crucial to reforming Canada's health-care system, says the head of a council evaluating nationwide efforts to improve medicare.
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A Maryland family caught in the partisan crossfire over a children's health-care bill in Congress is now stepping back into the divisive debate, advocating this time for state legislation that would expand coverage for adults.
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A father considers legal action to stop the downgrading of a neurosurgery unit where his son was treated.
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Washington Post business columnist Steven Pearlstein will be online to discuss his latest column, which examines ways to improve quality and control costs in the health care system.
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Washington Post business columnist Steven Pearlstein discusses the Democrats and health care.
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By Tucker, Patrick  Demography  Family-planning policies are essential in battling overpopulation.
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With health care the top domestic issue among voters as the nation heads into the 2008 elections, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease asked presidential candidates Tuesday to focus on ways to prevent, treat and manage chronic diseases that account for more than 75 cents of every dollar spent on health care.
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Mitt Romney, an architect of Massachusettsâ universal health coverage plan, is unveiling his proposal for overhauling the nationâs health care system.
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The President's vow to hold the line on health care spending signals he's trying to shape his legacy as a fiscal conservative
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In a quest to overhaul mental health insurance as "a huge legacy for my dad," the son of the late Sen. Paul Wellstone is teaming with the son of Sen. Edward Kennedy &#151; though the elder Kennedy has a different proposal in mind.
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Working the phones of a health-care hotline in Boston, Kate Bicego does something that is unique in the country: she explains how even the poorest people can get state-funded health coverage.
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OTTAWA (CP) - The former governor of Canada&#39;s central bank has made an unusual foray into the political fray over health care, questioning proposals for greater competition within the single-payer medicare system.