Need To First Fix The Health Care System Costs? (Optional)

95. I understand that you are worried about "cost containment," given that our current health care system is too expensive and, therefore, we shouldn't bring the uninsured into the system, until we fix the current system costs.

96. Are you aware that we urgently need to fix the health care system costs now to preserve Medicare, otherwise, Medicare will go bankrupt by the year 2019? That is only 11 years away! (Anthony Gregory, "The Bankruptcy of Medicare," The Independent Institute, April 27, 2004,at http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp? id=1294.)

97. Hence, health care system costs need to be fixed now to preserve Medicare for everyone, whether or not we have universal health insurance.

98. Fixing the health care system cost will require a strong mandate from the electorate-given the strong financial interests of the entrenched "stakeholders" (doctors, hospitals, insurance companies, drug companies, medical equipment makers, etc.) to maintain the status quo and, also, given the lack of political will by our legislators/leaders

99. If we can get citizens "up in arms" about affordable health care, then societal pressure can be brought to bear on the entrenched "stakeholders" and our legislators/leaders to fix the system costs now-not waiting until the 11^th hour when Medicare is in crisis.

100.To add to the chorus of those wanting to fix the system, we need to first bring the 47 million uninsured into the health care system before we undertake the complicated task of fixing the system costs, because the 47 million uninsured will then have a stake in fixing the system costs and will add their advocacy to those already in the system to demand that the systems costs be fixed.

101.In addition, we need to fix the health care system costs within the context of getting everyone insured, because if we fix the system costs, and then add an additional 47 million uninsured to the system, we may destabilize the cost structure that we fixed.

102.The bottomline is: Why should the U.S. pay more for health care, while leaving 47 million people out the system, when other developed nations pay less for quality health care and include all their citizens? The U.S. can do it-if the electorate demands that it be done!