Quote-of-the-day mailing list
Quote-of-the-day@mccanne.org
http://two.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/quote-of-the-day
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: qotd: The Des Moines Register is back on message
Date: Wed, 28 Aug 2013 13:43:00 -0700
From: Don McCanne <don@mccanne.org>
To: Quote-of-the-Day <quote-of-the-day@mccanne.org>
DesMoinesRegister.com
August 27, 2013
The Register's Editorial: Why tie insurance to jobs?
In many households, one spouse buys health insurance through a job for
the entire family. Now United Parcel Service Inc. has announced it
intends to cut this coverage for working spouses of nonunion employees
next year.
A UPS spokesman said the change is necessary to keep costs down.
Denying insurance to workers' spouses will certainly create a financial
burden for families, particularly if companies don't reduce the premiums
for workers when they implement such a change. Now the family needs to
purchase two policies to cover both adults in the home. Also, the health
insurance offered by the spouse's employer may not cover needed services
or may impose higher co-payments and deductibles.
Unfortunately, this is how things work in a country that has tied health
insurance to employment. We have long recognized that is a bad idea.
Your employer doesn't select and subsidize your homeowner's insurance or
your car insurance.
The practice burdens U.S. businesses and puts them at a disadvantage in
a global economy. In other countries, the government facilitates
coverage for everyone.
Employer-based health insurance creates problems for workers. They are
at the mercy of their company when it comes to which plans are available.
In some ways, the health reform law addresses some of these problems.
Yet the Affordable Care Act is built on a broken system. As the
Register's editorial board wrote for years prior to the passage of the
health law in 2010, this country needs a single-payer health care system
with coverage facilitated by the government. Similar to Medicare,
everyone could contribute through taxation and everyone would be
covered. Instead of such a change, Congress cemented in place the
practice of tying health insurance to jobs by requiring many companies
to offer it.
The long term result will likely be more companies doing exactly what
UPS is doing.
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2013308270030
Comment: We already knew that The Des Moines Register held an editorial
position in favor of single payer reform, but this reiteration of their
position is highly significant.
Much of the activity in support of single payer has faded as attention
has turned to implementation of the Affordable Care Act. The prevailing
attitude is that, well, we tried and this is the best that we could get.
We can work on trying to patch this system, but forget trying to
negotiate the major barriers erected by obdurate politicians. Even if
current laws and regulations have locked up much of the nation's health
care funds, we'll just try to muddle our way through with incremental
steps using some future form of magical waivers which we will need since
the currently available waivers, including those in the Affordable Care
Act, cannot change the basics of the fundamentally flawed, fragmented
infrastructure of multiple public programs and private plans, or no
plans at all for far too many of us.
What is so important about today's message is that the Register's
editorial board sees through this nonsense. "The Affordable Care Act is
built on a broken system." Congress has "cemented" into place this
highly dysfunctional infrastructure. Incremental steps cannot work when
we are heading down the wrong pathway.
As the Register states, "This country needs a single-payer health care
system with coverage facilitated by the government - similar to
Medicare, everyone could contribute through taxation and everyone would
be covered."
The Des Moines Register is back on message. We have to get back on
message as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment