I’m off to watch President Obama take on the Republicans for six hours. How delicious!
Any way one looks at it, the evidence demonstrates that Republicans are fundamentally opposed to health care reform that would enable all Americans to actually enjoy “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”, rights enshrined in our Declaration of Independence. Republicans would have us believe that they are for cutting costs, extending coverage, reducing the deficit, improving health care and working collaboratively with Democrats, but the facts paint a different picture.
Despite months of good-faith negotiation to accommodate Republican demands, only one Republican out of more than 250 actually supported the health care reform legislation passed by the House and Senate. This is despite the fact that Democrats significantly compromised on key priorities: a public option to make insurance affordable and introduce competition into the market, truly universal coverage (millions are still left uninsured in the current proposals) and protection of women’s right to choose.
Republicans are not committed to universal health care and protection from the catastrophic impact of serious illness on working families, leaving the United States alone among developed nations in not protecting its citizens. The latest Republican proposal would cover just three million uninsured, only 10% of what the Democrat’s legislation covers. By their own admission, Republicans question why universal coverage is a priority. Sage Eastman, a spokesman for Republicans on the House and Ways Committee asked, “Why is coverage the dominant theme?” For those who believe that Republicans are on the side of the middle class, consider the facts. Millions of the uninsured that Republican proposals won’t cover are working families and their children; universal coverage is not just about providing insurance to those in poverty.
By their words and actions, Republicans are demonstrating that their primary motivation is obstruction, not solving the health care crisis. They rail about “government takeovers” of health care and burgeoning government expenditures, but stand in the way of Medicare reforms to cut government spending without cutting benefits. John McCain attempted to block nearly $500 billion in planned Medicare savings and costly Medicare Advantage plans that receive unwarranted government subsidies. The Bush-enacted prescription drug benefit prohibits the government from negotiating for lower drug prices. Republicans are fine with government spending when it enriches pharmaceutical companies, but against it when it helps working Americans.
Republicans conveniently ignore the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office analysis that projects that the Democratic Senate plan would reduce the deficit by $132 billion over the next decade, and $1 trillion over the decade following. By contrast, the latest Republican measure, according to CBO estimates, will lower the deficit in the first decade by just $68 billion, while covering only one-tenth as many uninsured.
Republicans are scaring Americans into believing that health care reform will raise their premiums. In fact, the CBO concluded that the legislation won’t have much of an impact on premiums up or down.
If Republicans continue to stand in the way of health care reform, Democrats need to take matters into their own hands and use parliamentary maneuvers to let the majority will be expressed.
Any way one looks at it, the evidence demonstrates that Republicans are fundamentally opposed to health care reform that would enable all Americans to actually enjoy “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”, rights enshrined in our Declaration of Independence. Republicans would have us believe that they are for cutting costs, extending coverage, reducing the deficit, improving health care and working collaboratively with Democrats, but the facts paint a different picture.
Despite months of good-faith negotiation to accommodate Republican demands, only one Republican out of more than 250 actually supported the health care reform legislation passed by the House and Senate. This is despite the fact that Democrats significantly compromised on key priorities: a public option to make insurance affordable and introduce competition into the market, truly universal coverage (millions are still left uninsured in the current proposals) and protection of women’s right to choose.
Republicans are not committed to universal health care and protection from the catastrophic impact of serious illness on working families, leaving the United States alone among developed nations in not protecting its citizens. The latest Republican proposal would cover just three million uninsured, only 10% of what the Democrat’s legislation covers. By their own admission, Republicans question why universal coverage is a priority. Sage Eastman, a spokesman for Republicans on the House and Ways Committee asked, “Why is coverage the dominant theme?” For those who believe that Republicans are on the side of the middle class, consider the facts. Millions of the uninsured that Republican proposals won’t cover are working families and their children; universal coverage is not just about providing insurance to those in poverty.
By their words and actions, Republicans are demonstrating that their primary motivation is obstruction, not solving the health care crisis. They rail about “government takeovers” of health care and burgeoning government expenditures, but stand in the way of Medicare reforms to cut government spending without cutting benefits. John McCain attempted to block nearly $500 billion in planned Medicare savings and costly Medicare Advantage plans that receive unwarranted government subsidies. The Bush-enacted prescription drug benefit prohibits the government from negotiating for lower drug prices. Republicans are fine with government spending when it enriches pharmaceutical companies, but against it when it helps working Americans.
Republicans conveniently ignore the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office analysis that projects that the Democratic Senate plan would reduce the deficit by $132 billion over the next decade, and $1 trillion over the decade following. By contrast, the latest Republican measure, according to CBO estimates, will lower the deficit in the first decade by just $68 billion, while covering only one-tenth as many uninsured.
Republicans are scaring Americans into believing that health care reform will raise their premiums. In fact, the CBO concluded that the legislation won’t have much of an impact on premiums up or down.
If Republicans continue to stand in the way of health care reform, Democrats need to take matters into their own hands and use parliamentary maneuvers to let the majority will be expressed.
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