Obama, Democrats Lack Answers on How to Pay for Healthcare

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I Completely Disagree with you Mary Kate! I just watched C-Span and listened as the senator from California (forgot his name), specifically said that they will figure out how to pay for it once they figure out what's going to be in the bill. Make perfect sense to me!! Both Democrats and Republicans are still devising a bill. Once they do that, then figure out how to pay for it. They hope that more efficiencies in current health care programs (medicare and medicaid) will be one option, but it's still in the works.
Lastly, the majority of Americans including myself, wants to see a comprehensive public health care option. What will help bring the costs down is that the public option will compete with private insurers.

teri of WA 11:08AM June 21, 2009

As long as everything we buy is made in China, China will never run out of money for us to borrow to pay for anything.

HillbillyBill of TN 8:02AM June 16, 2009

Typical Republican article. Not everybody is a member of a healthy functional family, nor a mother, father, grandparent. This is not an Ozzie and Harriet country. Some people are divorced from their crummy families, are single adults, or homeless children on the streets.
As Kennedy misspoke: Ask not what your country can do for you ..... make a new country if it does not help and support all the people all the time.
Government should have a floor for all, paid for by taxes on those who are above said floor as am I and just about everybody I know. And we can afford it. How many people you know that don't have HDTV .... a real necessity.
I am retired employee, employer, military person, multi-millionaire and American. Been all over the world and yes some folks live a lot better than us.
It takes a village ..... who said that??????
--- yes, I have voted for the Governator and Reagan (he signed my College Degree come to think about it), so I am not a died in the wool Dem.

George Dill of CA 4:52PM June 12, 2009

I'm all for nationalized health care. Let's nationalize everything - healthcare, the banks, the auto industry - everything.
Of course, I also favor the end of nationalism as a concept, and see these things as a great means to that end. Most Americans disagree, yet these are fabulous ideas to destroy a nation. Keep 'em coming, I believe in change.

Rich of CO 12:36PM June 12, 2009

Myth - "It will be very expensive to get good health to everyone."
Fact - Actually there's a way we can have better universal health care at no more than we are now paying (see 5. below). Here are the facts (cf. www.pnhp.org):
1. We waste $100 - $200 Billion a year on the high overhead of insurance companies.
2. We waste 200 - $400 Billion a year on doctors filling out forms for insurance companies.
3. I don't know the compliance cost of patients fighting with insurance companies, but it must also be in the 100's of Billions.
4. We pay the highest drug cost in the world to drug companies that spend twice as much on profit and three times as much on "marketing" as they spend on research. This is about another $100 Billion each year.
5. Because of the above, we could give Super Medicare (few limitations, no co-pays, no deductibles and complete drug, dental & mental coverage) to everyone at no more cost per person than we are now paying.
Other countries with single payer systems get better health care as measured by all the basic public health statistics and they do it at less than half the cost per person. If we build on our rotten system, we will get a health care system with rotten foundations.

Len Charlap of NJ 7:59PM June 11, 2009

Myth - "It will be very expensive to get good health to everyone."
Fact - Actually there's a way we can have better universal health care at no more than we are now paying (see 5. below). Here are the facts (cf. www.pnhp.org):
1. We waste $100 - $200 Billion a year on the high overhead of insurance companies.
2. We waste 200 - $400 Billion a year on doctors filling out forms for insurance companies.
3. I don't know the compliance cost of patients fighting with insurance companies, but it must also be in the 100's of Billions.
4. We pay the highest drug cost in the world to drug companies that spend twice as much on profit and three times as much on "marketing" as they spend on research. This is about another $100 Billion each year.
5. Because of the above, we could give Super Medicare (few limitations, no co-pays, no deductibles and complete drug, dental & mental coverage) to everyone at no more cost per person than we are now paying.
Other countries with single payer systems get better health care as measured by all the basic public health statistics and they do it at less than half the cost per person. If we build on our rotten system, we will get a health care system with rotten foundations.

len Charlap of NJ 7:54PM June 11, 2009

"I don't know for sure where the money's gonna come from to pay for all these government programs, but I kinda think it's gonna come from them that's got it."
There are two ways to look at that in the current context. Yeah, yeah, I know that the first retort is, "Well, they're gonna tax the rich first and the middle class too.
The OTHER way to look at it is "Well, we're gonna get it back from the "insurance" industry we don't really need to be paying for for--at least not at the level we have it--, AND, we're gonna get it back from the obvious inefficiencies we have in current delivery of medical services." Those are two ratholes that have "got it" (the money) too. And bet your boots, those are two armies that are already fighting you.
I would argue that we also ought to get it back from the trial lawyers and excessive malpractice claims by enacting medical tort reform done as part of health care reform. (But, no, dear Republicans, NOT just the tort reform part without the major health care financing reform part to include a public plan option.
If a heart surgery that costs $100,000 in the USA can safely be done in India for one tenth the cost at $10,000, you surely KNOW we gotta do something to our "system", right? You know you DON'T have to keep raising $100,000 for each heart surgery, right? You can get those costs back down. And you do that with the competition of a public plan option. No delays for the corporations. Just do it.

Muser of NM 4:42PM June 11, 2009