The Washington Outsider


The Unhealthy Tone of the Healthcare Reform Debate

Previously published on May 17, 2010

America has long needed healthcare reform, yet for the past fifty years efforts have been met by fierce opposition. Part of this resistance comes from the influence of well-funded special interest groups, who foresee reform as a costly process that will only hurt them while the American people fear reform will mean higher costs and diminished care from a government takeover. On the other hand, the recent legislative push had the support of many special interest groups, which were previous against reform, as exploding healthcare costs promise to eventually push myriads of people out of the healthcare market and severely hurt the national economy. Although the Obama Administration and the Democratic Congress recently passed a massive overhaul of the healthcare system to force change, the debate is not finished as many issues remain unaddressed and efforts to repeal the law are only beginning. Unfortunately, the tone of the ongoing debate was and continues to be unhealthy.

Leaders of supposed social conservatives, such as Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, and Rush Limbaugh, have been particularly irresponsible by using fear tactics to incite panic with misinformation and blatant misrepresentations of Democratic proposals. Most notably, opponents have claimed and supported the idea that the healthcare reform bill would force elderly, as well as the disabled, to face "death panels" to decide what care they can get. Such fear-mongering is followed by continual attempts to characterize healthcare reform as tax and spend liberal efforts to socialize healthcare, so government can take over the private insurance market with bullet-point arguments coming from twenty years ago instead of facts on the current legislation. This fear campaign is being used by short-sighted activists to derail healthcare reform and empower their political base with extremely unhealthy, harmful political tactics versus honest efforts to change the direction of healthcare reform.

Ironically, many of the most caustic and vocal attacks have come from protestors who benefit from the socialist elements of our capitalist-socialist hybrid healthcare system as nearly fifty percent of the healthcare system is government controlled through programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and SChip. Admittedly, ending our hybrid healthcare system by canceling socialist programs, like Medicare, would effectively drive short-term costs down as millions of seniors, who require the greatest amount of care and burden the healthcare system the most, could no longer afford healthcare, thus eliminating most of the demand on healthcare providers. Meanwhile, Republicans have done little to improve the reform debate except make suggestions like taxing healthcare benefits. Of course, this direction would only make healthcare in the United States worse. It is likely protestors actually mean to communicate they are against government dictating how medicine is practiced, a government takeover amounting to a fully socialized healthcare system, entitlements, which will further weigh down the national deficit, shifting costs on people who cannot afford it, and the possibility of diminished care.

On the other side, Democrats have regrettably learned from previous reform efforts that quickly pushing a large legislative package with a single vote through before anyone fully understands the effects of the proposals is the only way of ensuring healthcare reform. Unfortunately, such urgency leads to poorly conceived policies and ineffective compromises while it rightfully angers Americans. Additionally, President Obama hit the campaign trail by making promises about reform policies that he could not rightfully make, until he eventually stepped up to play a direct hand in the legislative process. Meanwhile, proponents had certainly been vocal about what they wanted to do, yet failed to fully explain what their legislation was going to do as they attempted to prevent reform from being totally squashed.

The intent of healthcare reform is to stem exploding costs and ensure all Americans have access to adequate, affordable care now as well as in the future. Both sides have hurt efforts to varying degrees, but suggestions have and must continue to come from all involved parties. Republicans have rightfully identified tort reform as a necessary step while taxing "excessive" benefits may work so long as standards in coverage and care can be raised as well as insurance pools. Of course, healthcare reform cannot be done in a single legislative push as recent efforts should be used to on creating momentum toward change as programs like Medicare and Medicaid already need reform.

Fear is natural when it comes to something as important as healthcare; however, fear cannot decide how, or if, we reform a healthcare system that will eventually cost far more Americans their healthcare. For those trying to derail reform or offering ineffective ideas, there is no place in this ongoing debate for such political games as this is a very complex and serious issue; however, helpful opposing viewpoints are necessary to improve the quality of ongoing reform efforts. For the American people, legislators must be able to explore possibilities, which can both expand, as well as improve, coverage and control costs without hysterical activists squashing ideas before their merits can be evaluated as they did. Moreover, everyone in the healthcare debate needs to create a more constructive atmosphere, so everyone involved can share ideas to find solutions that will help improve coverage and contain costs.
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      • Public schools should not impose mandatory drug testing on students
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        • On the Future of a Nuclear Negotiations with Iran
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      • Understanding the Dysfunctional Nature of the US-Pakistani Relationship
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        • Reacting to the Escalating Crackdown in Syria
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      • Should energy independence be a high priority in the US?
      • An overview of world wide Human Rights violations
      • Nuclear Threat from Pakistan
      • Return of The Cold War?
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      • Coverage of FIFA World Cup is a Chance to Focus on Poverty >
        • The FIFA World Cup Offers Benefits for More Than Brazilian Soccer Fans
        • FIFA Can Bring Brazilians Together as a Nation
      • Being Prepared for Any Potential Dangers at the FIFA World Cup Games
      • Treading Softly on the Politicizing of the 2014 Sochi Olympics Over Gay Rights
      • Why NATO Operations in Libya Lack a Well-defined Mission
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      • Lessons from the Great Japanese Earthquake of 2011
      • A Modernizing Cuba Offers an Opportunity for Capitalists
      • The Seeds of Democracy Take Root in the Middle East
      • The Rebirth of Democracy in Tunisia
      • What May Come from the Hurt Revolution in Libya
      • Responding to the Violence of Qaddafi and Other Besieged Leaders
      • Embracing the Rise of a Democratic Egypt
      • Protests in Afghanistan Turn Deadly for Coalition Forces and UN Personnel
      • Haiti: Another Failing Humanitarian Investment
      • What Karzai Can Learn from Calderon
      • START II: A Necessary, Easy Success that Nearly Failed
      • Why Does the U.S. Government Support Independence for the Breakaway Serb Territory of Kosovo but Oppose Independence for the Breakaway Georgian Territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia?
      • Iraq's Electric Issues: When Human Wants Trump Economic Sense
      • The International Community Reacts to Wikileaks: We May Be Moving Toward a Third World War in Cyberspace
      • On Climate Gate
      • Assessing Obama's Afghanistan War strategy
      • 2009 Iranian Presidential Election: The Fallout
      • Resolving Sri Lankan Conflict through Free Media
      • What are the Global Consequences of Russia's Invasion of Georgia
      • The War in Iraq: an assessment of President Bush's surge strategy
      • Drug War: Actions of Venezuela, Columbia, Ecuador in terms of Resovereignization
      • Is the Iraq Refugee Crisis America's Responsibility?
      • US support for a united Kosovo, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia: why?
      • Should the US withdraw from Iraq?
      • Setting a Timetable for Troop Withdrawal from Iraq is a Terrible Mistake
      • War on Terrorism is needed
    • Law and Order >
      • Rape in the US Military
      • Ethics of Force-feeding Guantanamo Bay Detainees
      • Reacting to the Aftermath of the Tucson Massacre
    • Economy >
      • Affordability Drives Fear of Obamacare and the Individual Mandate
      • Is the Economy Built for a Job's Recovery?
      • Gutting Healthcare Reform of the Individual Mandate
      • Arizona Budget Cuts Lead to Lethal Healthcare Rationing:
      • Shameful Collection Practices of American Banks
      • The Fed Reveals it Actually Undertook an International Bailout
      • Thoughts on French Budgetary Reforms
      • Seniors Start Businesses
      • The Case for Slimming Down the US Military to Make it Better
      • Looking at the Obama Administration's New Approach to Economic Policy
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      • The Big Three's Big Chance
      • The Unhealthy Tone of the Healthcare Reform Debate
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      • Wikileaks Goes After the US State Department
      • Discussing the Political Environment Surrounding the 2011 Budget Debate
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      • What the 2010 Midterm Actually Said
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      • A Face of America’s Greatest Generation
      • A Story About a Man Who Made the World a Better Place
      • Making the World a Better Place
      • The Bipolar Ethical Nature of Google
      • Learning Computer Plays Jeopardy
      • Verifying Medicine is the Real Thing
      • Taking a Practical Step Forward in Optical Computing Using Slow Light
      • Scientists Take a Closer Look at How Lithium Batteries Work
      • Remarking on the First Blizzard of the 2010-2011 Winter Season
      • Driving in the Snow: Acceleration is the Key
      • How People in Northwest PA Are Coping with the Increasing Cost of Oil
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