[Sosfbay-discuss] Letter to the Editor

[Rob Means]

Letter to the Editor


The Wall Street corporate interests are at it again.  This time the
target is health care.  Of course, one could say the target is disease
care because that is where they make their money.  They don't make money
advertising how people can maintain and enhance their health (with the
obvious exception of Kaiser Permanente, bless them).  And they don't
make money actually paying when people get sick, so they use a laundry
list of ways to avoid paying.  These activities have led to several
multi-$100 million judgments against their fraudulent practices.  

These crooks are telling our elected representatives how to reform
health care in this country.  At a time when we spend about twice as
much per capita on "health care" as other developed nations, our results
are crappy!  We are 27th in terms of real measures of health such as
infant mortality, childhood obesity and alcoholism.  They want more of
the same because it is so profitable.  Can you imagine the health of
this nation getting worse?  What will that do to our society and
economy?

The first step health care corporate lobbyists accomplished was pushing
aside any discussion of the single-payer plan proposed and supported by
so many.  Like France and our own Medicare system, a government agency
would pay all the bills.  If operated as efficiently as Social Security,
overhear would run about 3% - rather than upwards of 20% for some of the
biggest corporate insurance companies.  Reputable doctors would be
promptly reimbursed instead of the hassle they have now with corporate
bureaucrats who are rewarded for not paying claims.  Single-payer also
avoids the complications involved in owning/operating a socialized
medical care system like in England and our own Veterans Administration.

Now, Wall Street interests are pushing Congress to eliminate the public
option.  They know that such an option would be so attractive to
Americans that private health insurance would fade away over time.
Given the results they have produced, that sounds like a good thing to
me.  But they gave over $500 million to Congress folks over the past ten
years, so they will likely get their way.

Congressman Mike Honda, however, supports the single-payer plan known as
H. R. 676.  And Barbara Boxer is a true Democrat that can be counted on
to do right by the people of California and the nation.  Unfortunately,
Diane Feinstein is a member of the rich class that the Republican Party
represents.  She is not in favor of a public option and has stated that
public pressure will not change her mind.  Maybe, however, we can change
her vote if enough of us tell her we want Universal Single-Payer Health
Care for all!  After all, elected officials are supposed to be our
representatives and do our bidding, not the bidding of corporate
interests that are literally killing us.

Rob Means
1421 Yellowstone Avenue
Milpitas, CA  95035-6913
408-262-0420    rob.means at electric-bikes.com
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