Tell Media: Include Single-Payer in Healthcare Debate (Video)
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To address the public’s need for a “robust debate of health care issues and potential policies”, ABC recently aired a prime time town-hall meeting (6/24/09) on President Barack Obama’s health reform proposals. The forum was supposed to feature “questions from every single vantage point,” according to ABC host Diane Sawyer.
Yet ABC did not air a single question about single-payer national health insurance–which many healthcare providers and citizens consider the best way to fix the broken healthcare system.
Single-payer national health insurance is a model in which healthcare delivery would remain largely private but would be paid for by a single federal health insurance fund (much like Medicare provides for seniors). The goal of healthcare reform, we’re told, is to expand coverage to the uninsured while lowering costs, and many people consider single-payer to be the most sensible way to achieve these goal.
Polls show that single-payer is supported by 59 percent of the American public (New York Times/CBS, 1/11-15/09) and 59 percent of physicians (Annals of Internal Medicine, 4/1/08).
Yet single-payer has been mentioned only four times on ABC News over the past 6 months, three of them by opponents dismissing the idea (3/5/09, 6/14/09, 6/14/09).
President Obama’s Public Option will cost at least one trillion dollars and exclude 36 million Americans, according to the CBO. Single-payer is the only reform proposal which would provide qaulity care, lower costs and ensure health care coverage for every single American. It’s not Socialized Medicine; it wouldn’t ration care. It would allow Americans to choose our own private doctor, our own private hospital or other private care provider.
The answer is right under our noses: Single-payer!
Dear Senator, thank you for taking the time to respond to my letter.
I have read the paper you sent me out-lining your priorities to fix our broken heath care system.
With all due respect, the problem is not our health care providers, the doctors hospitals etc; the core of our health care problem is the insurance companies. Senator, why in the world do we want continue a system where “For profit corporations” are in charge of determining who is eligible to get medical service and how much they are willing to pay for that service, all the while trying to make a profit?
No wonder our system is broken.
To ” For Profit” corporations in the middle providing health care for this country is just insane.
There is no need for insurance companies involved with our health care period.
Why are insurance companies lobbying so hard to maintain the status? For of course for the indecent amounts of profits they are making from the currant system.
Why are so many in Congress and the Senate apposed to a Universal, Single Pay, Not For Profit Health Care system when well over 70% of the American public wants it?
Really who are our Representatives beholden too?
Senator Bingaman, Governor Dean stated the battle now taking place is between the big Insurance companies and the American public. He said the Democrats just have to grow a spine and stand up to the insurance money and pass historic Universal Health Care legislation.
Who will you stand with. Take a look at House Bill 676 Medicare for all. Their over 75 sponsors to that Bill.