February 25, 2010
“Senator Feingold, please stay the course on health care.”
That was the sentiment from Medford resident John Thurmaier during last week’s listening session with Senator Russ Feingold held at the Medford Area Senior High School.
The clear message on health care from those present was that more needed to be done to fix our current broken system so that the growing gap between the uninsured and the insured didn’t end up in the terms of one doctor present, “bankrupting the whole system.”
Taylor County voters are, in general, about as conservative as they come when it comes to wanting minimal government interference in people’s lives. This can be seen in the planning decisions made by county supervisors and even the restrictions public health officials have in their ability to react independently to potential health hazards.
Yet, despite this tendency toward self reliance, there were no screaming mobs of residents calling for an end to government interference in health care. No one mentioned a fear of “Obamacare” or any of the other ominous scare tactics used by opponents of national health care reform. There was instead a call for Feingold and others in Congress to continue the necessary work of reforming the health care system.
Feingold himself noted that the majority of those who spoke at his recent listening sessions were more concerned about those in Washington not doing enough to push health care reform. He spoke of the champagne bottles popping in the lobbyist’s offices when it became apparent that the previous proposal was not going to advance.
Now, President Obama has introduced a new “hybrid” proposal prior to a bipartisan health summit which will be held and televised this week. Whether you believe the solution rests in the need for greater reimbursements for existing government programs or regulation of insurance companies to prevent excessive rate hikes, or out-right socialized medicine it is past time for something to be done. As it stands now, the current hodgepodge health care system in America is driving hardworking citizens into bankruptcy and leaving our institutions weakened and causing increased costs for those who can pay.
American medicine is a marvel of the modern world, however if we want American medicine to be at the forefront going forward we need to do something today to make sure it is affordable for all Americans.