The path to Universal Single Payer Health Care is .............

[Stinky The Clown]

Poll question: The path to Universal Single Payer Health Care is .............

Definitions for the purpose of this poll:

"Incremental" is adding people to something like Medicare in measured steps ...... kids first ..... then the younger seniors ....... then the disabled ...... or in whatever measured steps you want. It doesn't matter. the essential point is we get there slowly by almost sneakily adding people to the system. Its the "put a frog in a coled pot of water and turn the heat up" theory.

"Direct" is ..... well ...... direct. Just do it and do it now. Like when Sweden changed their country from driving on the left to driving on the right at 5am on Sunday, September 3, 1967.

[msongs]

1. the path to insurance corporation profits is thru HillaryObama & any republican nt

[Warpy]

2. The incremental path brought us Medicare

which was then underfunded and stopped dead in its tracks for over 40 years.

No more incremental bullshit is going to do. We need single payer and we need it NOW.

[Stinky The Clown]

3. ::::::Smmmooooooooch:::::::

Well said!

Often forgotten.

[supernova]

4. Really conflicted about this

My gut response is "Direct and ASAP" of course.

But I'm fully aware of how much the Extreme Right Wing would howl with indignation about it all, potentially throwing a very damaging monkey wrench in the whole project. The frog in the boiling water might be the only way to keep them reasonably quiet.

The only thing I can compare it to is, I'm curious how much of an uproar was there and what was the roll out like for Social Security in the late 40s - early 50s?

[sandnsea]

5. It failed in Oregon, like 60-40

Based on an approximation of a 6% tax. I don't think people will vote for it.

[stimbox]

6. Direct Action Gets The Goods!!!

[ThomWV]

7. Another way to say it is Evolutionary or Revolutionary

I chose Revolutionary.

[featherman]

8. Very difficult and involving years of educating the

American public... the bad guys hold all the propaganda cards at this time in history

[rateyes]

9. Just do it, and

those who scream the loudest will find out that it was a good idea after all.

[Stinky The Clown]

10. We agree

[Mimosa]

11. Why "Single payer?"

One of my closest friends has been a physician of 22 years. He is also a teaching professor who is very well-informed about the healthcare systems in Europe and Canada. He keeps me fairly well informed about the health care systems in the UK, Canada and Australia, which are all single payer. He says the system used in the Netherlands (which isn't single payer) gives patients and providers more individual choices and does not run into the same systemic financial shortages and difficulties such as de facto rationing and denial of medicines and delays of procedures which afflict Britain and Canada.

My question is why 'must' the USA adopt a single payer system when there are other viable methods of providing necessary health care of high quality for all citizens? I really want to know.

[supernova]

12. What does The Netherlands have?

I'm not familiar with their system..

Welcome to DU, btw. :hi:

[ThomWV]

13. Thick brows, a protruding chins, and dragging knuckles.

Oh, wait a minute, did you say neanderthals?

[supernova]

15. ..

:spank:

:rofl:

[Mimosa]

17. Why Single Payer?

Thank you for the welcome.~smiling~ I had registered a few years ago but never posted.

My friend described their system to me and I had downloaded a PDF from him. I will see if I can locate more information and post it here. It may take me a day to get in touch with Doc, who lives in another state.

I have much cause to be interested in health care as we can barely afford the expensive self-employed $5,000 (each person, no prescription coverage) deductible policies which exclude our primary health problems and cost us (DH and me) about $1,000 a month! I have a severe chronic illness and can't divulge what it is or they will raise the ratess beyond what we can scrape up. Needless to say I can't afford the best medication for it which is interferon. My friend/MD referred me to a doctor who treats me for the accompanying pain and knows what I have but will not diagnose. He too knows the BCBS would raise our rate and leave me with NO COVERAGE. I'd have to get divorced and on welfare to get med coverage. I have known a couple of compassionate good doctors.

[Eurobabe]

14. Just do it Stinky!

[Stinky The Clown]

16. I would!

In a heartbeat.