Schumer Promises Public Option In Health Care Bill

The Hill:

The healthcare reform bill that emerges from Congress this year will include a government-run public health insurance option, regardless of the bipartisan negotiations seeking a compromise in the Senate, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Sunday.

"Make no mistake about it, the president is for this strongly. There will be a public option in the final bill," Schumer said on CBS News's "Face the Nation."

Read the whole story: The Hill

Comments

[GaryFugit]

We need a one payer system. What we need to realize is that we are already paying for health care for everyone. One way or another we pay so why not make it simple. There is nothing that will stop those who want it to purchase additional coverage from doing so.

Do people really think that denying coverage stops people from becoming ill? That denying proper care doesn't cost more in the long run? That most of the current cost is administration, billing, collecting and unnecessary overhead?

We already pay, lets put the money to good use.

[nellie]

I like this good strong language. It's encouraging.

[CALAVA]

Is Shumer's plan any good? I've heard it isn't.

[frappe]

Why is there so much talk and reaction about what's going on with health care in Baucus' Finance Committee and not Kennedy's Health Committee?...The news out of Kennedy's Health Committee has been far more positive than the junk and politics coming out of the Finance Committee where they seem to be more willing to abandon the public will and sell out to the interests of the health care industry by claiming to want "bipartisanship". It's enough to make one puke....And we don't want any old "public option". We want a STRONG and VIABLE PUBLIC OPTION, Sen. Schumer.

...Forget about bipartisanship. If you deliver a bill with bipartisan approval, we will know that you have deserted us.

[zakon]

YES WE CAN! A hallow public option is NOT WHAT WE THE PEOPLE WANT.

H.R. 676 EVERYBODY IN, NOBODY OUT: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAuwaKl3-nU

Email your House Rep & Senators (D or R): http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml

Use my e-mail if you want...

Dear Honorable ______:

Thank you for your service and for representing my fellow constituents and me. National health care reform is underway and I hope you will please support a single-payer, not-for-profit system for delivering health care to all U.S. residents.

I kindly request that you advocate and vote for universal single-payer legislation that provides all individuals residing in the United States with free health care that includes all medically necessary care, such as primary care and prevention, prescription drugs, emergency care, and mental health services. Importantly, legislation needs to prohibit an institution from participating in the program unless it is a public or nonprofit institution. Legislation also needs to give patients the freedom to choose from participating physicians and institutions.

Though America has the best healthcare in the world, for those who can afford it, we also have the national shame of millions being either uninsured or underinsured. Please bring reform that will make us feel proud that America has the most humane healthcare in the world.

It is my hope that you will please consider my opinion as you continue in your honorable role of representing my fellow constituents and me.

Sincerely,

[windup]

SINGLE PAYER
Hope Obama is listening

[PiscesPrincess]

I agree. But realistically, it ain't gonna happen. We, the People, would have to be willing to march on Washington in large enough numbers to really impact the possibility of Single Payer.

[timberdoodle]

With the news now out the health care insurance industry spending 1.4 million dollars a day on lobbying against both a single payer system and a public option you would think people would storm Congress and demand health care coverage in the form of either single payer or at the very least a public option.

The Republicans stating they will defeat any bill that includes a public option are simply saying to all Americans we want the health care industry to make more money and don't care how many people have to die to achieve this goal.

[PiscesPrincess]

Correct on all counts. sigh. and really, its too bad people will Not rustle their buns to march on DC
there are enough people sitting at home, in front of their tvs and computers, with little or nothing to do who could organize a campaign for these benefits. NOW is the time, folks, Chopchop.

[dems08]

email Senator Feinstein
to support public option:

Phone: [phone] | Fax: [phone]
Web: http://feinstein.senate.gov

[Halter]

SINGLE PAYER.

[PiscesPrincess]

MARCH On DC.

[KQuark]

Paul Krugman supports HELP bill with public option.

OK everyone call him a sellout too now.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/06/opinion/06krugman.html

"HELP Is on the Way

Now, about those specifics: The HELP plan achieves near-universal coverage through a combination of regulation and subsidies. Insurance companies would be required to offer the same coverage to everyone, regardless of medical history; on the other side, everyone except the poor and near-poor would be obliged to buy insurance, with the aid of subsidies that would limit premiums as a share of income.

Employers would also have to chip in, with all firms employing more than 25 people required to offer their workers insurance or pay a penalty. By the way, the absence of such an “employer mandate” was the big problem with the earlier, incomplete version of the plan.

And those who prefer not to buy insurance from the private sector would be able to choose a public plan instead. This would, among other things, bring some real competition to the health insurance market, which is currently a collection of local monopolies and cartels. "

[PiscesPrincess]

Spot On. and your take on this just might work.

[Tommygun264]

Declaring health care reform and the public option dead, whining about how disappointed we all are in President Obama and laying blame game for losing a fight that isn't over yet while the insurance industry spends $1.4 million a day lobbying Congress will only become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Yes, it would be nice if all we had to do after the inauguration is sit back while President Obama pushes everything on the progressive agenda through single-handed, but anyone who thinks that is how change will come is deluded. I'm not 100% happy with President Obama, but I never expected to be. Like everyone else who holds public office he is a politician - we need to focus on our principles, not any one person. Do you really think health care legislation would even be a subject of debate under McSame/Palin? Now more than ever we need to be calling, writing and emailing our Senators, Representatives and the White House, personally demanding passage of Health Care Reform with a strong public option, making it clear that our continued support is contingent upon these things. Loud, energetic, public grassroots participation beyond election day - THAT is the only way change will ever come to Washington. Ever think greater public participation was the plan for change all along? Only we the people can bring real change to DC.

[KQuark]

Everyone must fight for public healthcare.

Last call to sign Dr. Dean's petition.

http://standwithdrdean.com/

Contact the white house and the congress with emails and phone calls.

http://standwithdrdean.com/where_congress_stands?chamber=&party=&state=&hc_status=&commit=Filter

Sign Bernie Sanders' single payer petition.

http://sanders.senate.gov/petitions/index.cfm?uid=7fd59f2e-88e1-477a-8eaf-762a5b050809

Sign Durbin's, Leahy's and Schumer's petition for a public plan.

http://ga3.org/campaign/healthpetition?source=hc_ty

Send faxes to push single payer with the white house, relavent committees and now your own congress people with HealthJustice's free faxes. You can actually customize your faxes to say whatever you want now.

http://www­.1payer.ne­t/action-a­lerts/send­-a-free-ef­ax-to-poli­cymakers.h­tml

http://ga1.org/campaign/singlepayer

If you can be there this Thursday in Washington to fight for healthcare reform.

http://www­.1payer.ne­t/rally/vo­lunteers/a­dd

Healthcare stories.

http://stories.barackobama.com/healthcare

Progressive change campaign committee.

http://boldprogressives.org/

[dayala]

thanks for posting that...do you think we can get Sanders and Dean to help organize a rally on DC and serve as key note speakers. I'll be contacting them to ask, I urge everyone else to do the same.

[BizSamurai]

Thank you.

[TalkTalkTAlk]

Vote These Weak Democrats Out, Vote In Some Dems With Spinal Cords!

VOTE THEM OUT! VOTE THEM OUT! VOTE THEM OUT!

[PiscesPrincess]

March March March and chopchop. (in other words, stop complaining and get to work YOURSELF)

[loki]

Ha! Public Option my butt. Yeah, it might be in the bill, but it sure wont be what anyone wishes it to be.
The public will get the option to either buy expensive insurance from the insurance companies so they can be told " sorry we dont cover that " every time they need medical care, or it will be mentioned as a suggested name for a plaque or something in the mens room of the congressional public restrooms.
But as for a public health care option that will do anything to help working people , you can forget that.
This , like everything else, will only help the very wealthy corporations get more wealth from the taxpaying citizens.

[LemonMeringue]

I am so afraid of this too.

Single payer is the only solution.

[KQuark]

Facts about what a public option would save.

http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Publications/Fund-Reports/2009/Jun/Fork-in-the-Road.aspx

Bottom line.

With no universal healthcare costs will rise 6.5%
With only private universal healthcare costs will rise 5.8%
With universal healthcare with public option costs will rise 5.6%
With universal healthcare with public option and Medicare limits costs will rise 5.2%

If you don't think 1.3% is much it's about $2 trillion dollars over 10 years.

It's a no brainer that we should have a public option that manages costs for providers like Medicare.

[Manx]

Any so-called "health-care reform" without a public option will be disastrous politically for Obama and the Democrats.

[Marcospinelli]

I think that people mistakenly believe that Obama&Democrats want public health care.

If the Bush administration taught us nothing else, it's that anyone can sell anything to the American people, if you're stolid and relentless in your sales pitch and tactics.

Obama didn't get to be the first black president, vanquish the Clinton machine and the oldest and most experienced politicians in our nation's history by not having mastered these skills. Nor do Democratic politicians (more incumbents than ever, in office longer) not know how to do it. How do you think Democrats managed to keep impeaching Bush and Cheney off the table and have us still reelecting them, not marching on Washington with torches and pitchforks?

Obama and Democrats know how to do it -- They don't want to do it. The trick for them has been to keep us believing that they really do want a populist public health care program, but that they're merely inept. And to get us to keep voting for them in spite of their failure to deliver on any of our alleged shared objectives.

Our mistake is in believing that Democrats want to pass public health care, single payer or not. If Democrats could get away with forcing universal health care (forcing all Americans into for-profit insurance policies), they'd do that.

The DLC, which is in control of the Democratic Party, is not a populist group of people. They're in bed with Big Business, just like Republicans.

[KQuark]

blah blah blah.

Even Krugman disagrees.

"The only question now is whether a combination of persuasion from President Obama, pressure from health reform activists and, one hopes, senators’ own consciences will get the centrists on board — or at least get them to vote for cloture, so that diehard opponents of reform can’t block it with a filibuster."

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/06/opinion/06krugman.html

Questioning people's motives is always out of bounds.

[PiscesPrincess]

You sound like a Ralph Nader following. emphasyzing the word follower.
why not just Get Up and Get Moving and Go march in DC for the things you believe in.
chopchp.