The first question I ask people who are unsure or opposed to reforming the existing health care system is, “What value do the private insurance companies bring to the system?”  While they’re considering their response, I prompt them with the statement, “They don’t own any facilities or equipment through which care is delivered; they don’t develop or manufacture any drugs or equipment for diagnosing conditions or administering care; and they don’t employ anyone who performs diagnostic or therapeutic services.”  Usually the response is either, “I don’t know,” or “none.”  The correct answer is, “none.”

The pitiful spectacle of health care “reform” over the past 15 months is just one of many examples of how dysfunctional our legislative and political process has become.  The debate was begun by the President and the Speaker of the House declaring that, “single-payer is off the table.”  This began the impossible task of trying to serve the American people while protecting and promoting the interests of the private health insurance industry, which has ended, predictably, in a needlessly convoluted and complicated piece of legislation which opponents of any reform have been able to exploit with whatever negative light they wish to cast on it.

When Congress wants to try to convince citizens it is doing something to serve their interest, when doing so would harm the interest of those who are paying their way, they make the “fix” as complicated and confusing as possible, and they drag out the debate endlessly, so that, in the end, it dies of its own weight and age.  The threat of doing something positive for their constituents, and the process of confusing and complicating the issue, engenders the attention and contributions from the industry and their lobbyists.  In the end the politicians are paid off, the lobbyists are gainfully employed, the industry reshapes the landscape more to their advantage, and the American people are reassured that they have, once again, fought off the boogieman of Big Government.
 

 This issue is really very simple.  The existing system, involving private insurance companies, is the most expensive in the world, delivering a marginal level of care, to which many have no access.  We do have publically financed (single-payer) care for certain groups (seniors, vets, some children) which works well, and with which patients and care providers are well satisfied.  All we need do is extend the same care to everyone. It’s Simple.