Sunday, January 24, 2016

Bernie's Health Care Plan


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Much made in the news since Hillary's campaign attack on Bernie's health plan - a health plan that is really nothing new ... just single payer - improved and expanded Medicare For All, and coming out of payroll taxes plus a tax paid by employers. 

 Take it from Joe Cool:

This would provide Americans with a healthcare system similar to that used by Canadians.  You would not pay premiums, deductibles, co-pays, or hospital bills, and the average American would reportedly save about 5k per year (at minimum). Of course, if you wind up in a hospital, you're saving a lot more than that.  Or if you "ever" need to see a dentist.  So in this blogger's opinion, Bernie's savings estimate is rather modest.

 Below, some discussion of the b.s since Hillary and her campaign know very well what single payer is - and that repeated studies have shown that single payer in the U.S. is the most cost-effective way to provide quality health care to all Americans. Even our own Congressional Budget Office said so.  The reason why Hillary is suddenly so short-sighted on this topic is because her campaign is taking so much money from the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries. Hillary's journey to the Dark Side on health care reform has been documented, much further back, too, as in Michael Moore's documentary on the American health care system, "Sicko."


The American People deserve the best health care system possible. Health care is a human right and shouldn't be subjected to the callous profit motives of obscenely wealthy health insurance and pharmaceutical CEOS while tens of thousands of people die or suffer terribly for want of access to doctors and hospitals.

 Every developed nation has REAL universal health care, except for the United States of America, and we are one of the wealthiest. Even poorer, less developed nations are doing it, successfully. So we certainly can.  That means being able to just go to a doctor or hospital without having to contend with these insurance or financial concerns - just the health issues along with ease of access.  People in other nations take these rights for granted - as they should - and are rightly appalled by the way our current system operates.



Thirty-three million Americans still don't have coverage, and many millions more are under-insured, have health care in "name only," or can't afford the premiums, co-pays, deductibles, and additional medical costs not provided by these plans.

 It is an international disgrace that our Congress is so sold out to these insurance and drug interests that more American citizens than those who have died in our wars, die every year as a result of this bald-faced, unabashed, shameless, open corruption - and when those elected officials could straight-forwardly pass a 30 page bill like H.R. 676 opening an already cost-effective Medicare system, with additional improvements, even, to the whole country. 

 This bill (and Bernie's plan, too, I see) includes dental - when U.S. dental conditions have been openly compared by our country's practitioners to third world countries. So Americans direly need dental coverage.

 The same can be said with respect to vision - as Americans literally go blind for want of both preventive and surgical procedures now considered basic to that branch of 21st century medicine - and readily available to citizens in all other developed nations.  We saw as much, for example, when Playing For Change New Orleans street musician Grandpa Elliott had cataracts, but not the coverage for removing cataracts, and thus, he had publicly gone blind in one of the most medically advanced nations on this planet - the United States of America - while corrective procedures were a city stroll across the street, or a metro bus ride away.

 When you are a citizen of a rich nation, right next door to a hospital that can correct your blindness, but doesn't, that is a kind of apartheid wall, wouldn't you say?  Invisible but very real. A big wall between the blind American and the hospital doors right in front of them - an invisible but very real medical apartheid wall.  This is morally wrong, unjust, and against every principle we wish to stand for as a nation.  

 It's also pretty damn stupid to do this to a lot of people.  Even from the so-called efficient business model point of view.  Why conservatives in other countries also support their universal health care.

Grandpa Elliott playing his harmonica on the streets of New Orleans. He went publicly blind from cataracts because he did not have vision coverage for basic surgical procedures.  Eventually, in his case, as a member of Playing For Change, money was raised for his surgery. But this is not the case for millions of other, more anonymous Americans, and Americans should have guaranteed, readily available access to these medical procedures, as a matter of right, and without regard to their socio-economic status.  Health care is a human right and a civil right under the United States Constitution - whatever the U.S.S.C. wants to say.


 We should elect a President like Bernie Sanders who is not beholden to these health insurance and pharmaceutical industries, but to the American People. Bernie has a long record truly supporting a real healthcare-for-all system - as shown by numerous non-industry, non-partisan studies (referenced at blog posts provided in links above).  

 Again, that would be an improved, expanded Medicare for All, leaving no one behind; and since Bernie isn't taking money from these other interests, it is reasonable to predict that he would continue to vigorously stick to his long-held positions, on behalf of people over profits, once in an even higher elected office than Vermont Senator.  Let's put a real single payer supporter like Bernie in the United States presidency.
Another American protests for single payer in New York City. Single payer is supported by the majority of the American public and American health profession.  Yet the government won't pass Medicare For All, because politicians are funded into office by the health insurance and drug companies. We can stop voting for these people - and instead - vote for people who aren't taking this money and will truly represent our interests.

Playing for Change in Stand By Me: 


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Editor's Note 4.7.2016 It has been brought to our attention that the Joe Cool tweet posted is missing, since ol' Snoop was canned on twitter by a twitter CEO fundraising for Clinton's campaign. Take heart, however, Snoopy Lives! so here's another example of what they censored; we'll leave the other one up "as is" ... more evidence of what their campaign is really about.  Defeating "Health care for all" - what every other developed nation has ... but frightening stuff for the insurance and pharmaceutical profiteers, along with Mrs. Clinton and her generous "speaking fees."



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