John Edwards Universal "Insurance" Plan

Edwards plan for healthcare is a kind of seesaw game that tries to balance the public’s call for healthcare reform with an unquestioning obedience to the private insurance industry and all their financial and political influence. With the central problem of the today’s healthcare crisis lying in the outrageously inefficient and wasteful administration of our current healthcare system; 30% of every healthcare dollar spent going towards non-healthcare related spending such as marketing, paperwork and corporate profit; Edwards avoids the simplest and most sensible solution. He avoids standing up for the American people, in the name of what should be a citizen’s basic right: access to healthcare. He avoids doing what the majority of other developed nations, from Canada to much of Europe, have already done to ensure care and well being to all of their citizens. He avoids making the most economically sound decision, by enabling the U.S. to spend less each year on healthcare while proving all citizens with comprehensive coverage. He avoids doing away with private insurance. But, why?

One has to wonder what good reason there is not to convert to a single payer, not for-profit healthcare system. We spend 2.2 trillion dollars a year on healthcare, twice as much as any other country, and yet we do not get better care. Study after study finds us lacking here. There are 45 million+ Americans who are without any coverage and 50 million+ who are underinsured: half of all bankruptcies being related to healthcare and 3 out of every 4 of these bankruptcies had health insurance! They were underinsured, many not even knowing so until the time of need came. And yet we spend 2.2 trillion? That’s because of the 30% waste. Take 30% of 2.2 trillion dollars and put it towards healthcare and you solve the problem.

This is the system that Dennis Kucinich has proposed, the only Democratic Candidate to do so. His co-sponsored bill, HR676, has already been introduced to Congress and gained the support of over 60 Reps., various Unions and healthcare professionals. The plan extends the non-profit Medicare system to all, using only 3% for administration. The Dean study found that 95% of families would save money by switching to this system. The average family premium is currently about $3,000, under HR676 it is only around $1,900. No more co-pays, no more not denial of coverage, free choice of provider for comprehensive medical coverage; including dental, vision and psychiatric. This is not socialized medicine, only government single payer insurance. The doctors are still private.

And what about costs? The current healthcare system is clearly unable to control costs. The rise in health costs has been astronomical in the last ten years. Only a single payer system can accomplish this by cutting out the overhead, setting rates fairly and according a national budget, and by being the only healthcare insurer, having enough clout to actually control the costs of pharmaceuticals. Really, the reason that single payer makes the most sense is because it makes the most financial sense. Not only are we spending less as a country, not only are 95% of families saving money, but businesses also save by not having to pay for employees, which has taken its toll on American companies unable to compete with foreign companies who have single payer systems. GM reports that the cost of healthcare adds an extra $1,500 to the price of each car.

Edwards proposes a Medicare-like program that would compete with the private insurers, adding that the market may then "evolve" into a single payer system similar to the one I’ve just described. But, what he doesn’t mention is how unlikely this would be. In fact, the government program is bound to fail in this competition since the private companies are going to insure the healthy and let the government cover the sick and thus spiral in costs. This is against the whole idea of risk pooling which is the reason we have insurance in the first place. My question, is why not just use this program and do away with the privates altogether?