Will Dems pass & Obama sign health bill WITHOUT single payer or public option?

[yurbud]

Poll question: Will Dems pass & Obama sign health bill WITHOUT single payer or public option?

What are the chances they will do that and call it a success anyway?

[provis99]

1. you forgot one choice: No health care deal of any kind is passed.

[BlueJazz]

2. I voted 40/60. I feel politicians are (again) just going to "Walk the Fence"

[lib_wit_it]

3. I voted 80% they will approve some lame ass bill. But can we change that? How about if we

don't give in?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=6260779&mesg_id=6270131

[vi5]

5. That's pretty funny....

The people already let them know their opinions on this when they voted for them to take office and do this.
Every poll indicates that people want them to do this.
They have the numbers in both houses to do this.

Yes, they have the numbers. They are choosing willingly not to force the republicans to fillibuster. We'd win the p.r. war in a split second if they passed a comprehensive, wide sweeping bill that reformed health care and then dared the republicans to fillibuster it and oppose it. But that would involve fighting hard for the american people.

They've proven by where we are now, due to their unwillingness to fight and to push back either against their republican buddies or their corporate benefactors that they don't care what we think. We've already made our voices known and loud in any number of ways and they've ignored us by not fighting.

If they cared what we think they would have already put Baucus in his place and stopped his antics and just passed a bill with 50 plus votes which they'd easily get.

[yurbud]

9. yep--it is time to put the blue dogs down (non-violently)

[DailyGrind51]

4. Sadly, I believe they are just trying to figure out how they will explain it to "us".

[ipaint]

6. Done deal. The decision was made by the insurance companies.

"The customer base for private insurance has slipped since 2000, when soaring premiums began driving people out. The recession has accelerated the problem. But even after the economy recovers, the downward spiral is expected to continue for years as baby boomers become eligible for Medicare -- and stop buying private insurance.

Insurers do not embrace all of the healthcare restructuring proposals. But they are fighting hard for a purchase requirement, sweetened with taxpayer-funded subsidies for customers who can't afford to buy it on their own, and enforced with fines.

Such a so-called individual mandate amounts to a huge booster shot for health insurers, serving up millions of new customers almost overnight.
The industry fears that the government would force lower fees on hospitals and physicians, enabling a public health insurance plan to offer consumers a better bargain.

That, they say, would make it hard for private companies to compete for customers. Insurers also fear that a public option could easily be converted later into a single-payer healthcare system.

Health insurers don't see a public plan "as the nose of the camel under the tent; they see it as the front half of the camel under the tent," said Robert Laszewski, a former insurance company executive and industry consultant.

"They are interested in 45 million new customers," he said, "but the first thing in everybody's mind is preserving their right to do business in a way that can be profitable and meet shareholder needs."

http://articles.latimes.com/2009/jun/07/business/fi-healthcare7?pg=2

Too much is invested on wall street in the medical industry to allow it to be threatened by even the weakest public option. The insurance companies are now pressing for larger fines on those who can't afford their share of the premium after subsidies. They'll get that too.

[subterranean]

8. That last quote was very telling.

Their primary goal is to meet shareholder needs. Not policyholder needs, but shareholder needs.

[timeforpeace]

7. The question is, will we consider Obama's campaign promise kept with this? Is it reform?

[Zhade]

10. No. But he's already broken most of his other promises, so this is no surprise.

He may be surprised at how many (like me) never vote for him again, though.

[Jakes Progress]

11. And call it victory. nt