America Takes a Step Towards Universal Health Care and the 21st Century
Posted Under: Capitalism, Health Care, Human Rights, Obama, US Politics
The Obama administration will be breathing a sigh of relied today as the House of Representatives narrowly approved the President’s flagship health reforms. A battle still remains in the Senate, of course, and amongst the crazed zealots in the country crying ‘freedom’ whilst attempting to deny millions of the poorest Americans the right to basic health care. But this is the first victory for progressives in what, for anyone on this side of the Atlantic who isn’t a slapheaded idiot like Daniel Hannan, is one of the most bafflingly incomprehensible arguments in history.
It was Sun Tzu who, all those centuries ago, argued that to achieve victory, one must know one’s enemies. But I simply cannot understand anyone who refuses to recognise health care as a universal human right. Not least those FOX News fanatics opposed to a bill that does not even come close to free state-run health care, which should be a basic requirement for any developed nation, and indeed is a treasured asset of many developing nations. Whilst proclaiming their right to choose – an utterly irrelevant criticism in light of Obama’s reforms – they would deny hundreds of thousands of people any choice save death or bankruptcy. And that is not just for the poor and uninsured. That goes for all those whose policies just don’t want to pay out, who pick holes in every claim, because saving money is more important than saving a life in this most inhumane of models.
I can begin to understand the neo-liberals of the New Right who believe society should be orientated around a free market philosophy. I can even begin to understand social conservatives opposed to abortion and stem cell research on the grounds of their own moral compass. But I can never understand anyone who argues that human life should be left to the naked principles of the market. But then, perhaps Glenn Beck will be able to draw me a map of the retarded right-winger’s mind on his blackboard. It’s the only way I’m ever going to get it.
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Reader Comments
I just hope he hasn’t used all his political capital on this particular battle instead of the far more important one of climate change. A defeat probably would have boded poorly for a successful climate bill. However, there have been suggestions that one of the reasons Copenhagen is going to fall over is that the Americans have said they will probably not be able to get anything through the Senate.
One step forward, and a long battle ahead. As the cost of healthcare in the States continues to soar, it is good to see that the Universal Healthcare bill has passed the first step to becoming law.
It is hard to believe that people are so opposed to this bill. Just this week I was speaking to someone I’m close to who lives in the States and has been unemployed for quite some time. He told me that he just found out the health insurance premium he has covering him and his wife is increasing to $750 a month. In addition the co-payments they have to make every time the go see a doctor or specialist ($10-20 per visit), or buy a prescription ($10-35+ per medication) are all increasing as well.
Sadly, though this is true, he and his wife still stand by their beliefs that having a Universal Healthcare Plan would turn the USA into a Socialist country. In fact, they both have said they would rather go broke trying to pay for their much needed medicines than be ‘owned by their government’.
Personally, I see this as missing the point entirely, and having a basic right to healthcare is no more being ‘owned by the government’ than it is to accept unemployment payments every week.
There is a large group of people who watch things like FoxNews and believe every scare mongering lie that is said on these ‘news’ programs, even when their ‘journalists’ tend to contradict themselves from month to month.
I’m hoping for the benefit of the nation and especially for the people I care about who are blinded by their own ignorance about what Universal Health Care really means, that this will go on to pass through the Senate. It’s certainly not going to be an easy battle though for that to happen.