Health Care Reform is a classic example of checks and balances and the struggles between the Congress and The Executive Branch. This heated debate has taken some recent turns and President Obama, in conjunction with other Democrats, has had to make some significant concessions in order to move forward.
Your task is to research the most recent chain of events and compromises proposed on both sides of this debate. As individuals, list and briefly explain some of these changes. Why has the President moved more "to the center" with some of his proposals and what are the implications of this move.
Try to search video clips on cnbc, cbs, abcnews, or any of the other major news agencies to help you become informed. You will be graded on the content of your blog and use of resources and websites.
A massive issue in todays nation consists of major healthcare issues and concerns. Mr. President Barack Obama has a large task at hand trying to compromise with both sides of the spectrum. He has laid forth some proposals that could dramitically effect the healthcare of many individuals.
ReplyDeleteOur president's proposals includes having more affordable healthcare by having the largest tax cut in the middle class. Acting on this proposal would set up new competitive health insurance market. It brings greater accountability and ends discrimination against pre-existing conditions. It is also going to tremendously squash the national debt by $100 billion in the next ten years.
Republicans favor less ambitious legislation with a much smaller price tag and no tax increases. Democrats main objective requires set lowering costs to consumers and businesses, letting people keep their current plan if desired, and preventing denial of coverage due to pre-existing medical conditions.
On our personal standpoint it should be universial healthcare for all and cheap healthcare. The current healthcare is not working and is in desperate need to be changed to accomadate not only the higher class but also the lower class, serving the ones in need.
I think Obama is moving more to the center because the republicans and democrates are clashing ideas. According to sen. Lamar Alexander he believes that the republicans point of view is a better one. As urgent as it is Obama is trying to movee it along because it is a dragged on issue. He is insisting on mostley Democratic points and he states that even if "the gaps can't be bridged" the people will know what the debate is about. Democrats are looking for a solution to the high medical costs, erodig coverage, and uneven quality. Through the democrats way of operation, many people would experience increases in taxes and medicare cuts.
ReplyDeletepersonally, people who work should have medical insurace, but not at the price that the government is asking people to pay for it. creation of a less expensive system of health care would be liked by many.
4 comments:
ReplyDeleteMatt M said...
At Squashed.tumblr.com, various pros and cons are shown such as
Pros:
1) Eeryone can have insurance if they want it
2) It will cut the costs of medicals costs significantly over time
3) Insurers wont be able to say they spent enought money on you and you are responsible for the rest of your medical payments
4) It will increase competition among other insurance companies
Cons:
1) There would be a tax increase if you make over half a million in a year by 1%
2) You either have to buy health insurance or pay a 2% tax increase
3) For the first ten years, the total national cost for this program would be 100 billion dollars.
4) The bill might increase the cost of health insurance
I think that we should balance out our debt and end foreign wars before we get into subjects like health care. I believe this is a good program and would be very beneficial to everyone. But we need to balance our budget because we would be digging an even bigger hole than we are already in.
February 25, 2010 10:15 AM
Arthur B. said...
The Republican view is that they want families to be able to buy health care insurance across state lines. Further more Republicans want to allow small businesses to band together for lower health insurance costs. They also want states to be the ones doing the reform, and also wish to do away with junk law-suits so that doctors won't be forced to do useless tests to avoid the law-suits, overall lowering the bill.
Democrats want health care to be fully universal, and wish to tax the wealthy to pay for it. They feel the current system is 'dysfunctional'. Democrats are aiming to extend health care to 97% of all Americans.
My take on this is that the politicians are acting like children who don't get their way, minus the tantrum.
February 26, 2010 5:58 AM
ReplyDeleteCaitlynA said...
There are a lot of things that weigh into this decision. It's a touchy subject and it's going to take a lot of consideration and debate. Some of the things that are being discussed are the rights of women in terms of coverage of abortion, breast cancer, how long should the stay be after child birth and who gets to decide, and women shouldn't pay more than men. Now when it comes to Republicans vs. Democrats, there are a few differences.
Republicans:
"association health plans"
no government mandated minimum requirements.
associations decide what they are willing to pay for.
Democrats:
government based exchanges.
So all in all the answer to this issue is going to take a while. But in my opinion, I think we should have universal health care but with some restrictions. Things such as what's paid for and what's not and how much everyone gets.
*Pros:
ReplyDelete1.The number of uninsured citizens has grown to over 45 million (although this number includes illegal immigrants, etc.).
2.Health care has become increasingly unaffordable for businesses and individuals.
3.We can eliminate wasteful inefficiencies such as duplicate paper work, claim approval, insurance submission, etc.
4.We can develop a centralized national database which makes diagnosis and treatment easier for doctors.
5.Medical professionals can concentrate on healing the patient rather than on insurance procedures, malpractice liability, etc.
6.Free medical services would encourage patients to practice preventive medicine and inquire about problems early when treatment will be light; currently, patients often avoid physicals and other preventive measures because of the costs.
7.Patients with pre-existing conditions can still get health coverage.
*Cons:
1.There isn't a single government agency or division that runs efficiently; do we really want an organization that developed the U.S. Tax Code handling something as complex as health care?
2."Free" health care isn't really free since we must pay for it with taxes; expenses for health care would have to be paid for with higher taxes or spending cuts in other areas such as defense, education, etc.
3.Profit motives, competition, and individual ingenuity have always led to greater cost control and effectiveness.
4.Government-controlled health care would lead to a decrease in patient flexibility.
5.The health-care industry likely will become infused with the same kind of corruption, back-room dealing, and special-interest-dominated sleeze that is already prevalent in other areas of government.
6.Patients aren't likely to curb their drug costs and doctor visits if health care is free; thus, total costs will be several times what they are now.
7.Just because Americans are uninsured doesn't mean they can't receive health care; nonprofits and government-run hospitals provide services to those who don't have insurance, and it is illegal to refuse emergency medical service because of a lack of insurance.
8.Government-mandated procedures will likely reduce doctor flexibility and lead to poor patient care.
9.Healthy people who take care of themselves will have to pay for the burden of those who smoke, are obese, etc.
10.A long, painful transition will have to take place involving lost insurance industry jobs, business closures, and new patient record creation.
11.Loss of private practice options and possible reduced pay may dissuade many would-be doctors from pursuing the profession.
Malpractice lawsuit costs, which are already sky-high, could further explode since universal care may expose the government to legal liability, and the possibility to sue someone with deep pockets usually invites more lawsuits.
12.Government is more likely to pass additional restrictions or increase taxes on smoking, fast food, etc., leading to a further loss of personal freedoms.
13.Patient confidentiality is likely to be compromised since centralized health information will likely be maintained by the government.
14.Health care equipment, drugs, and services may end up being rationed by the government. In other words, politics, lifestyle of patients, and philosophical differences of those in power, could determine who gets what.
15.Patients may be subjected to extremely long waits for treatment.
16.Like social security, any government benefit eventually is taken as a "right" by the public, meaning that it's politically near impossible to remove or curtail it later on when costs get out of control.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteOver the past couple of months democrats and republicans have fought over the health care reform proposals. These arguements have caused the health care reform bill to be changed mulitple times, trying to get everyone to agree with the important bill.
ReplyDeleteMany democrats believe that health care is a goverment problem. They look for a solution that is goverment based, and not put into the hands of the people. This is one reason why republicans are fighting the bill. Many republicans are wondering who is going to pay for all the health care. They agree that everyone should have health care in the United States, but they think that people should have to pay for their own health, and not others.
The debates of the health care reform bill has caused many controversies and will continue to do so, even after the bill is passed.
President Obama has taken on a very difficult challenge of resolving the healthcare issue. It is hard to bring together both republican and democratic ideals into a bipartisan agreement. The biggest problem is that neither side is willing to budge or compromise on what they would like, or aren't willing to compromise enough. With the current status of the Senate, it is even harder to come to agreement.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the healthcare plan must take on a more politically neutral form, or be completely scrapped and reformed. For people of the lower and middle classes, it seems like an excellent idea to pass healthcare reform. It would lower the price of healthcare and possibly increase the quality of healthcare for them. However, for those in the upper middle class and upper class, the healthcare plan is a nuisance. For them, it would lower the cost of healthcare, yet it may leave them with less of a choice in coverage.
I don't think that the healthcare reform is going to be passed in its current form. It doesn't fulfill the desires of either party and would be turned down by either side if it were shifted more towards either side of the political spectrum. No matter how many changes are made to the current healthcare reform, I don't think it will be able to pass at the time. However, if some new ideas are brought to the table, possibly even completely rewriting a brand new form of healthcare, Americans would be able to see new healthcare in the future. I think that right now, with the condition of the economy, the United States couldn't handle healthcare reform. When the time is right, America must realize it and act.
Healthcare reform is definitely a big necessity in the United States, but I do not believe that it is available at the moment and it will be some time before we see any reform for healthcare.
Healthcare is the most controversial and prominent issue in America today. Both republicans and democrats have different ideas based on how healthcare reform should be implemented.
ReplyDeleteObama's current healthcare plan calls for universal healthcare, a competitive healthcare market for those with able means, the end of discrimination due to preexisting conditions, more accountability of insurance companies by forcing to elaborate on their policies, and a decreased budget deficit over time. To pay for this, the president's plan proposes a tax cut for the middle class and a tax hike for the upper class.
The republican oppose this plan, saying that the nation doesn't have enough money. They also believe that this will create a "socialist" healthcare system that will raise taxes and lessen care. They also oppose the large amount of government involvment that the plan entails.
The republicans propose that their should be no tax increases, no state-to-state restrictions, and create laws that make it easier for states to regulate insurance. They also want to change medical liability laws to prevent bogus lawsuits, and increase incentives for employees and small businesses to band together to buy insurance.
The democrats oppose this plan, saying that it doesn't directly address people with preexisting conditions, doesn't directly provide universal healthcare, and that state line policies would diminish quality.
It seems that the president has changed his previous plan to accomadate more of the republican ideals. In light of the recent filibuster predictament, Obama has had to create a bipartisan plan in order to sway republican votes. The republicans,however, still want the democrats to junk it and start over.
Ever since the idea of universal healthcare was proposed there has been arguments and disagreements among Democrats and Republicans. Although both sides agree that a new healthcare system must be created, they have opposing ideas on how the system should be created and what should be included in the healthcare bill.
ReplyDeleteRepublicans from the very beginning have characterized the healthcare bill as socialist, and they have repeatedly denounced the bill for putting too much power in the hands of the government. They also state that most of Americans are satisfied with the current healthcare system and that this bill is for the minority who are not satisfied. Republicans question where the money for this healthcare would come from and question what programs would be cut in order to make up for the increase in spending on healthcare. Their focus is more on protecting the people and enhancing their healthcare experience than on giving people cheap healthcare.
Democrats are fighting more for universal healthcare that will provide everyone with healthcare, protecting people with preexisting conditions from insurance companies, while trying to be able to provide high quality healthcare.
The way this healthcare bill is currently, I do not believe it will pass. Although President Obama has tried to make a more bipartisan bill there are Democrats who oppose this plan, stating that it is not enough and there are still Republicans who are saying that the plan is too much. The way the bill is now, it will be tough to pass with the bold egos of both parties.
Ever since the idea of universal healthcare was proposed there has been arguments and disagreements among Democrats and Republicans. Although both sides agree that a new healthcare system must be created, they have opposing ideas on how the system should be created and what should be included in the healthcare bill.
ReplyDeleteRepublicans from the very beginning have characterized the healthcare bill as socialist, and they have repeatedly denounced the bill for putting too much power in the hands of the government. They also state that most of Americans are satisfied with the current healthcare system and that this bill is for the minority who are not satisfied. Republicans question where the money for this healthcare would come from and question what programs would be cut in order to make up for the increase in spending on healthcare. Their focus is more on protecting the people and enhancing their healthcare experience than on giving people cheap healthcare.
Democrats are fighting more for universal healthcare that will provide everyone with healthcare, protecting people with preexisting conditions from insurance companies, while trying to be able to provide high quality healthcare.
The way this healthcare bill is currently, I do not believe it will pass. Although President Obama has tried to make a more bipartisan bill there are Democrats who oppose this plan, stating that it is not enough and there are still Republicans who are saying that the plan is too much. The way the bill is now, it will be tough to pass with the bold egos of both parties.
One of the most recent controversial legislative issues is that of universal healthcare in the United States. When President Obama took office this was one of the major issues on his agenda. In order to gain more support for his healthcare reform, President Obama had to become more centrally place on the political spectrum. A more moderate approach will be more likely to be a bipartisan effort than one which is more extreme towards conservative, or in Obama’s case, liberal. Moving more towards the center will gain more support from those who are on both sides of the political spectrum, but not people who are extremists on those sides.
ReplyDeleteBoth Democrats and Republicans believe that healthcare reform is necessary, but they disagree greatly on how it should come about. Democrats believe that universal healthcare is needed in order to act on behalf of the American people, to provide healthcare to all no matter if people have pre-existing conditions. Many Republicans, like John McCain and Mitch McConnell, feel that the reform should be scraped and restarted or do nothing at all, because the current bill is not close enough to center of the political spectrum to satisfy both parties. I agree with this, because healthcare being such a controversial and large issues needs to have support from the majority. Republicans also feel the costs to the American people and tax payers is far too great and the cost estimates are too vague.
There have been many debates over the current healthcare situation. While there are many pros (insurance for all, preexisting condition coverage, care for seniors, lower prescription costs, etc.), there are many serious cons (a cost of roughly $900 billion, increasing coverage rates, tax increases). While Democrats backed the reform strongly, they have been forced to toy with the notion of compromise because of Republican views. It is the Republican view that affordable healthcare coverage should be available to all, but that to allow a universal government-run program would be a dangerous step on the ‘slippery slope’ that leads to an overly-powerful government.
ReplyDeleteThe original proposal would increase government spending by approximately $2 trillion, which would only lead to an increase in taxes in an effort to salvage the nation’s debt. In recent news interviews, President Obama called for action, saying that now was the time to come together despite the parties’ different views. Obama proposed methods to reduce the overall cost of the reform, including a limit on medical malpractice lawsuits. Another proposed method of cutting back on federal spending was to use medical professionals as undercovers in Medicare/Medicaid fraud investigations.
President Obama has been accused of being ‘too far left’ in his political standings, which is fairly true. Obama’s change-oriented proposals have clearly liberal undercurrents, which has forced him to move more ‘toward center’ to meet popular demands. Though the above compromises are a step in the right direction, there are quite a lot of issues left unaddressed. If Obama wishes to truly keep in the public’s favor, he will have to address other public discrepancies: the fact that the new healthcare plan will provide for government-funded abortions (a topic which the public is divided over), whether or not illegal immigrants are included in the proposed coverage (both views on this topic would have massive consequences), as well as whether a government program will eliminate competition in the market.
I do not have a clear answer on how to fix the current healthcare crisis. I believe neither the Democrats nor the Republicans do, either. I believe that healthcare should be available for everyone, but the proposals that are being made do not seem plausible and will create, rather than solve, more problems. I think that Obama is right in trying to make compromises, at least on the topic of costs; increasing the nation’s debt will only breed more problems later on, and his current proposition is a surefire way to do so. The only hope we have of coming to a more solid plan is to follow Obama’s suggestion and make a compromise. In my opinion, the Democrats have a basic plan with the right intentions, but the plan will never work unless a compromise is reached with the Republicans, who seem to be keeping the cost of it all in mind.
Sources include: naturalwellbeing.com, healthcarereform.nejm.org, truthout.org, huffingtonpost.com, christianpost.com, portfolio.com, cbsnews.com, abcnews.com, personalinsure.about.com.
Most people agree that healthcare should be good quality and affordable to all people. There are also many points that have been argued over. Some people believe the entire bill should be thrown out and started brand new while others think that the bill should be rushed through on reconciliation. The expansion or cut of Medicare and Medicaid has also been a huge debate along with whether the government has a right to review the insurer's rate increase or to lay out rules for the insurence companies to protect families.
ReplyDeleteTo make the bill more moderate Republican ideas have been added to President Obama's plan. These ideas are things such as medical liability reform, extending the dependent coverage to 26, and giving employees the option to opt out. It would also give employee incentives to people who recieved healthcare through their employer.
My personal understanding of most of these things is not very good and it extremely hard for me to come to a conclusion as to my personal thoughts on this issue. It all seems way to difficult for me to start to comprehend because I see all the points that are in the bill but I dont understand it. It doesnt seem to be "clicking" for me at all.
Everyone wants health care, the thing that the parties are arguing over is who is going to pay for it, and how much government is going to be involved in this market.
ReplyDeleteAt the health care reform summit on February 25th, Senator Lemar Alexander spoke on the republican party’s behalf. Senator Alexander made it clear that republican agree that everyone should have affordable health care, but the current bill that is being worked on is far to massive to sift through to make sure America is not surprised at some of the terms of the bill. He, and the republican party truly believe, “This can’t be fixed, we need to start over.”
President Obama, in his weekly address urges that we need to pass this bill now keep the insurance companies under control, holding them accountable. He said that he has “incorporated some ideas offered by Republicans into the bill and are now eliminating special provisions that had no place in health care.” But there is no time for starting over “because you know why? The insurance companies aren’t starting over.”
This sounds funky to me, why are we pushing through a bill that is so massive that there are defiantly some hidden pot holes in just because the insurance companies aren’t starting over, starting over what? What dose he even me there, I think he is purposely being vague so Americans’ imagination will take over and fear that the insurance companies are sole out there to get that. I would think that there is time, and we need to take our time to carefully craft a new bill that will truly help the people with no surprises!
The system of checks and balances is definitely being utilized in this issue over health care reform. Although it would be easier for Americans to get health care I don't believe it will be possible to come to a decision without President Obama moving more towards the center. Even if he did this he may lose democratic support.
ReplyDeleteAt Obama's health care summit he stated "Politically speaking, there may not be any reason for Republicans to want to do anything, but, I thought it was worthwhile for us to make this effort."
Obama basically states that he knows Republicans aren't going to budge on this bill unless changes are made towards the center. Even if changes are made I believe the issue will continue to remain in discussion because both sides will always want something different in the bill. Without the 60-40 majority in the senate the Obama will have to please even more republican suggestions.
In my opinion I believe Obama can make as many changes as he wants but the bill still won't be passed. The issue is too extreme and affects too many people for the republicans to just take a chance and the democrats won't completely change the entire bill to please the republicans. I think both parties need to develop a plan in a bipartisan effort based on what their agreements.
The main issue of the healthcare reform is the availability of sufficient healthcare coverage to those who need it. The democrats and republicans have many conflicting views on this issue which make healthcare reform a controversial issue.
ReplyDeleteOne of the items supported by democrats is the public option, buying insurance from government-run insurance companies or from already existing competing companies. This item would increase the level of government control, repelling republican support. However, because of the lack of support for this item, Nancy Pelosi has even conceded that public option will likely not appear in the final bill.
Another controversial issue is abortion. Republicans are, for the most part, against tax money to pay for abortions while democrats have been split on this issue. If abortion is kept in the bill, it will cost democrats votes from their own party members.
Republicans are criticizing the current reform for not addressing medical malpractice, which costs practitioners money and add to the issue of healthcare. President Obama has agreed to look into this issue, in order to gain more republican support.
Because the democrats have lost the majority in the House, they will need republican support to float some of their desired items. Democrats are interested in the idea of budgetary reconciliation, for which 51 rather than 60 votes are needed to pass the measure, but are concerned that not passing items through the full procedure will seem rushed or like they are trying to cram some of their ideas in.
Sources: cnn.com, abc.com
The main issue of the healthcare reform is the availability of sufficient healthcare coverage to those who need it. The democrats and republicans have many conflicting views on this issue which make healthcare reform a controversial issue.
ReplyDeleteOne of the items supported by democrats is the public option, buying insurance from government-run insurance companies or from already existing competing companies. This item would increase the level of government control, repelling republican support. However, because of the lack of support for this item, Nancy Pelosi has even conceded that public option will likely not appear in the final bill.
Another controversial issue is abortion. Republicans are, for the most part, against tax money to pay for abortions while democrats have been split on this issue. If abortion is kept in the bill, it will cost democrats votes from their own party members.
Republicans are criticizing the current reform for not addressing medical malpractice, which costs practitioners money and add to the issue of healthcare. President Obama has agreed to look into this issue, in order to gain more republican support.
Because the democrats have lost the majority in the House, they will need republican support to float some of their desired items. Democrats are interested in the idea of budgetary reconciliation, for which 51 rather than 60 votes are needed to pass the measure, but are concerned that not passing items through the full procedure will seem rushed or like they are trying to cram some of their ideas in.
Sources: cnn.com, abc.com
The healthcare debate has been long in the process and, without many adjustments, seems unlikely to end soon. President Obama has been criticized for being too left and too center, and has been forced to make tremendous concessions in his original plan. Currently, the bill is trying to provide healthcare to all US citizens (including plans for preventative care and mental health treatment), expanding on previous plans with benchmark payments, and decreasing abuse of healthcare plans.
ReplyDeleteAs the debate rages on, more and more concessions are made by the Democrats to appease the Republicans. Recently, the bill has focused on lowering fraud in Medicare and Medicaid, increasing funding for experiments in malpractice reform, and making high-deductible insurance policies available in the new plan. These were all responses to Republican suggestions and pleas.
These concessions reveal better than many other political debates how are meant to work, as decreed by the concept of checks and balances. With the recent election Scott Brown in Massachusetts, the Republicans won the ability the filibuster their way out of voting for a health care bill they don’t support. This means the healthcare bill won’t pass without major concessions from both sides. Current major issues both sides need to either agree on or concede include abortions, malpractice laws, and public option insurance.
Sources:
http://uspolitics.about.com/
http://www.thepowerofa.org/2009/08/a-major-health-care-concession/
http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2010/02/22/obama-health-care-plan-explained/
http://uspolitics.about.com/
http://opinion.latimes.com/opinionla/2010/03/obama-latest-healthcare-reform-concessions.html
Healthcare reform is long overdue. The debate over healthcare shows the system of checks and balances as neither side of the debate wants to change their opinions too much. However, Obama has realized that the reform bill will not pass without moving more towards the center. He has proposed compromises such as: making healthcare reduce Medicare spending, the new plan gets rid of the government run public health insurance option (this was only supported by liberal democrats), and the plan would cut the deficit by $100 billion over the decade and $950 billion more the ten years after that first decade. This plan incorporates the year long work in the Senate and House on both sides. At the summit meeting, Obama has agreed to back decent Republican suggestions.
ReplyDeleteThe Republicans agree that healthcare is important. They have recently told how Democrats do not listen to the public opinion, but were going to the summit meeting "open minded" as stated by Mitch McConnell and Pfeiffer, respectively.
The healthcare reform bill would do the following for New York residents: it would insure 2.7 million residents, provide 1.6 million residents with tax credits to pay for the insurance, decrease Medicare costs for brand-name drugs, end the "hidden tax" worth $9.3 billion from uncompensated care state wide, provides economic stability, and lessens paperwork for physicians.
I believe that health care is necessary for the United States. However, I do not know how long other Americans and government officials are willing to wait through the fillibuster for the bill to be passed.
Sources: cnn.com healthreform.gov
Healthcare has become one of the greatest concerns in the US today. Unfortunately, it is not an issue that can be easily resolved. While Democrats and Republicans are in agreement that the status quo is no longer enough, neither group is willing to sacrifice their ideals. President Obama’s current reform bill includes a number of strong ideas, yet it is too far to the left to gain majority support.
ReplyDeleteReform is essential to the growth of our nation. If we want progress, Obama must compromise more than has so far. Most Americans fall towards the center of the spectrum, and it is important that he listen to everyone when trying to create such a consequential change.
I believe some of his strongest points include greater equality (no discrimination based upon preexisting conditions), investments in prevention and wellness, and universal coverage. His proposed “lower cost” is one of the bill’s greatest faults, for it will result in an increase in taxes. With the proposed plan, it seems likely that the quality of coverage may decline as well.
No one has the answers. It is important, however, to act before the healthcare crisis becomes greater than it already is.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/Issues/health-Care
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/03/obama-calls-again-for-an-up-or.html
www.healthreform.gov/
Healthcare has been an ongoing problem ever since President Obama took office. Obama is being accused of being to far left with his ideas on healthcare and the republicans will not support him. The reform bill for healthcare will provide everyone in the country with healthcare. It will limit the power of healthcare plans that could be to expensive or not give enough coverage. For our country to move forward Obama has to move more towards the center so that he can get some republican votes. With Scott Brown being elected in Mass. republicans can filibuster the bill which makes the entire process more difficult. I believe that Obama needs to move more towards the center with his ideas. Universal Healthcare is not the best way to handle the healthcare process. If Obama does not move his views, nothing will be passed. Healthcare needs to be resolved and the officials need to find a common ground, so that this debate can end and our country can move forward.
ReplyDeleteThe healthcare debate has developed into more than just an argument over how healthcare in the United States should be handled. This issue is a turning point for our generation. It is a test of the functionality of our government. If the two parties cannot reach an agreement, many will lose faith in our leaders. The president recognizes this and has moved his views more towards the center to try to get more republicans to support him. This has angered many democrats but the fact is that no matter what Obama does, he will always be chastised by some. Healthcare is not a matter to be taken lightly. A healthcare plan should not be built for the interest of corporations, but for the interest of the American people.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I’m all for reform. I’m still unsure about the Health Care Reform Bill though. From what I understand the big issue is the cost. In theory Obama’s reform will gradually cut the US national debt, give cheap coverage to anyone, lower, middle, and higher class. The equalization of Healthcare will definitely benefit those who are in need of insurance, while still allowing those happy with their current plan to continue utilizing it. This equalization will also create a much more competitive market for insurance, and will therefore keep costs low for anyone. This is extremely ambitious, and conservative Republicans would prefer the same thing with a much smaller price tag, which they see as unattainable.
ReplyDeleteI think it’s pretty safe to say everyone would love universal, low costing healthcare. The two are ideals supported by liberals and conservative’s. Therefore, for Obama to gather support for the bill, he had to blur the real difference between the two ideals and basically tell American’s he wants the same thing.
Another issue is whether or not the bill supports federalism and if it even complies with the constitution. The Supreme Court has the power to interpret the bill as federalism and therefore constitutional, but they executive and legislative branches don’t have to agree. They have their own oath where they also have to interpret the Constitution, and if by some sort of reasoning they find the Bill is not federalism, but communism or something, it’s within their power to stop it, or at least halt it until its further perfected. Obama of course doesn’t want to counter the bill in any way, and Congress proposed the bill in the first place. The only thing theoretically stopping the bill is the extreme dislike from the Republicans. As John McCain already stated many times, the Republicans find the bill unsavory.
Health Care Reform is a major controversial issue in today’s society. Many politicians disagree on the subject as there is a verity of view point on what needs to b e done to fix the problem. However, one thing they all agree on is there is the need for some kind of health care reform to be put in place.
ReplyDeleteMany Republicans claim that the president’s plan is too progressive. They say his measures are too socialist in nature. They fear that if the United States were to pass a bill for universal healthcare, the country would become more communistic in nature, like Russia. Others claim that it would put a great strain on tax payers to provide for those who cannot afford it. Another fear posed by doctors and other medical special inters groups fear under new health care policies; patients will be denied the care they need under the general healthcare guide lines.
However, on the other side of the spectrum, Democrats argue that in the greatest Democracy in the world people are still suffering without healthcare. In addition, they argue that the millions of people, who cannot afford to pay their hospital bills due to a lack of healthcare coverage, put a greater strain on tax payers than it would be just to put a general healthcare policy in place. Also other Democratic Nations such as Britain and Canada have put health care system in place and have benefited from it both socially, economically, and democratically. These countries have had great success with the policies that they have put in place, saving tax payers money and providing everyone with the health care they need.
Personally I am more for the Democratic side. I think that if other world powers are providing universally healthcare options, the United States should hop on the band wagon before we get left behind. In addition, I have a hard time understanding how the United States can afford to fight a war when it cannot afford to take care of its citizens needs first. Then what happens? In addition to having to pay for war, now we have to pay for all the soldiers who come back needing healthcare. Instead of doing something to correct a problem we are enabling it to grow and became worse. The government needs to find away to protect its citizens by providing affordable health coverage to all with no lope holes for the insurance companies to crawl out of.
ADAM SUPER said: The pros of having healthcare are that if you get hurt, you will be insured and not have to pay off a huge debt. People have had major surgury and have ended up owing $50,000- $100,000 back. Another good reason that medicare and healthcare are important is because over a very long term period, bills will become cheaper to pay. The insurance compainies would now lower their prices because of competion so you would end up getting really good deals on insurance coverage.
ReplyDeleteThe cons to having healthcare available to everyone is that it will cause a nation debt worth billions and would raise the overall debt to $18,000,000,000,000. Another con is that this might cause healthcare bills to rise.
I feel that everyone who wants healthcare should be able to have it. If you don't have healthcare than that is your decision and you live with the possible consequences. If we were to go through with the healthcare plan, than I feel that we should wait a little longer because there are bigger issues than healthcare and medicare out there right now like the war and the national debt. Once the debt has been lowered down from 17 trillion dollars so the goverment needs to start paying that back. The next big issue that needs to be stopped is the war. This is one of the main reasons for the huge national debt. The third and final reason which is sort of being taken care of is people loosing their jobs. Once more jobs are produced and these others issued mentioned are taken care of, than we can worry about healthcare in the United States. But right now, it should be a personal choice whether or not to have it.
With the high cost of medicines and medical bills for those without insurance, many people find themselves battling debt in the already difficult economic time. For this reason among others, America is ready for a system of universal healthcare.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure everyone who paid close attention to the presedential election remembers Obama's promises for universal healthcare. Much to the dismay of republicans, he has been putting forth a full effort to do so. However, because of the lack of support from republicans, he has thusfar been unable to pass it. In order to pass the healthcare reform, Obama will most likely have to propose a watered down version of the bill. For example, a recent revision of the bill included a $100 billion cut along with an expansion on medicaid coverage.
Despite these concessions, the health care reform has yet to be passed, making one wonder exactly what Obama must do in order to pass the bill. Perhaps Senator McCain was right in saying that America doesn't want universal healthcare? Or, more likely, is this a case of lower class Americans being underrepresented?
The debate over universal healthcare is likely to continue for years to come, even in the case that it eventually passes.
The debate over healthcare has become one of the most prominent and controversial issues in the United States today. Neither the democrats nor the republicans are willing to compromise with the other side or let go of their opinions. Although Obama’s healthcare plan has many strong ideas, the republicans see Obama as being too far left and refuse to compromise unless he throws away the current plan and starts from scratch.
ReplyDeleteThe President has disclosed a proposed health insurance reform plan that allows American families and small business owners to control their own health care. His proposal begins to give middle class families and small business owners the health care security they've been losing over the past years,
There are two separate issues being addressed through health care reform. The first is expanding coverage. Currently, about 46 million people do not have health insurance, and those with insurance, are finding that either the insurance coverage is being scaled back to deal with rising costs, or coverage is being eliminated. Current reform proposals from Democrats are mostly focused on the coverage issue. A second issue being addressed is the growth in healthcare costs. Growth in healthcare costs will be an issue whether or not coverage is expanded. Republicans have focused mainly on cost control measures, while Democrats have targeted expanded coverage, so it’s not really clear if there is enough in common for a compromise. It will be hard enough for Democrats to agree on legislation to expand coverage, adding effective cost control measures makes compromise even harder, so the current legislation is unlikely to do much about this problem.
Of the two major parts of President Obama's health reform, the one facing the most controversy is expanding health coverage. Over 45 million Americans are now without health insurance and the number continues to grow. Democrats are pushing for universal health coverage for everyone, including the unemployed. With the costs of insurance still on the rise it has become increasingly difficult to afford coverage as an individual or as a small business. Republicans are more concerned with lowering costs than expanding coverage to everyone because by lowering costs more people would be able to afford insurance while still having incentive to work hard.
ReplyDeletePart of Obama's goal is to cut medical costs so that everyone can afford it, but the medical industry's opinion must also be taken into perspective. After having to pay for 12 years of higher education, many doctors will not like the pay-cut required to lower medical costs.
Although having a national database would be a great help in diagnosing problems and getting more screenings to be preventative of problems would both greatly benefit the American people, the expenses put on the tax payers for these services would be unbearable. For Americans struggling to pay for their own health coverage, helping pay for everyone else’s health coverage is not an option.
Obama wants to expand health coverage and cut medical cost so that it is affordable to everyone. Though these seem to be desirable ideas, the cost to achieve them is a tremendous stress to many Americans. The inability of the Republicans and the Democrats to come up with a form of compromise is becoming the biggest problem. The idea of cutting the healthcare reform as it is now and starting from scratch sounds desirable, but the cost of this is tremendous on the average american citizen. The economy as it is at this time is too poor and unstable to support the complete cut of the healthcare reform.
ReplyDelete