Edwards Outraged - 50 years without Universal Health Care

[jsamuel]

Yet another winning answer from last night. This answer got the highest score of any candidate at any moment during the debate.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x43181

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

1. It was a wonderful answer but Edwards has to back away from his plan which

involves the private health insurance companies and join up with Dennis and go for full Universal.

[LSK]

2. Edwards plan is a path to full Universal

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=1416989&mesg_id=1416989

Why do people not understand that you just cant make huge leaps with our form of Govt???

:banghead:

[GeorgeGist]

3. Real progressives understand ...

that our form of Govt doesn't practice the principles upon which it stands.

[jsamuel]

5. it is full universal, they are using incorrect terms

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=1421670&mesg_id=1421913

[Blackhatjack]

6. LSK is right.... you cannot convert the present system overnight, it has to be in installments

Edwards is moving in the right direction, and his plan would make it mandatory that everybody is covered. period.

That immediately insures 40 million plus, (7-10 million of which are children).

Making healthcare available at an affordable price does nothing to insure children who cannot make that decision on their own.

If anyone is going to stand up to the insurance companies, it is Edwards. THey know it, and are spending a lot time and money to counter him.

[depakid]

9. Sometimes you HAVE TO make big leaps

particularly with problems of this scope and magnitude.

Now, you may not be able to do it all at once- but you HAVE TO commit to a different paradigm.

One of my favorite Einstein quotes on point: "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them."

And this is precisely what Edwards is doing.

Taking the incremental approach- expanding Medicare and Medicaid eligibility and merging the two plans, that's one thing. Trying to "reform" a dysfunctional system in ways that don't address the fundamental sources of the problem, that's just setting everything up for failure- and could make things worse.

[TahitiNut]

11. Yeah... and 1st base is a 'path' to home plate. But NOBODY says 1st base is the objective.

Look ... I'm a Edwards supporter. Right now, he's close to Kucinich in my favor. But this is one reason why he's 2nd to Kucinich in my esteem ... a "kiss your sister" approach to Universal Health Care. Kucinich has a BETTER stance on Health Care and Kucinich has a BETTER stance on Iraq.

I'm not interested in sorta/kinda/closeto "path" statements of objectives. I'm interested in the FUll Monty.

[jsamuel]

4. It is full true universal health care.

People who say that Edwards' plan isn't universal (very few) need to understand Edwards' plan better.

It is TRUE Universal Health Care. It isn't kind of universal, it is universal. What you probably mean to say and get confused about is that it isn't single payer. People also are confused about what exactly that means. People think that means that if it isn't single payer, then the private insurance industry will be the primary beneficiary of health care. However, with Edwards' plan, they are relegated to having to try to compete with Edwards GOVERNMENT MEDICARE PROGRAM FOR ALL.

[PATRICK]

7. That would

keep the Medicare attempt honest and the make the insurance companies desperately honest instead of carping like evicted tenants from the sidelines. That stage would answer the debate without seesawing immediately to full government control. the Insurance companies would have to expose themselves, lose billions and ante up on the so-called free market principles for once. This would also help cut the legs out from under the lobbyists holding sway over the Congress.

Like getting out of Iraq or cleansing the government, surgery is needed even though simple amputation has a lot emotionally going for it. Keeping the ball moving progressively is a dynamism to keep our country headed back to the future and the responsibility for doing so has to be shared with a populace freed from lies and tyranny and too healthy to regress.

[mdmc]

8. Perhaps people stood up against coverage hard and strong for a long time

Kucinich begged for universal coverage during the 2004 election. What was Edwards doing back in the day?

[SoCalDem]

10. 50 years and about 20 more to go...before anything substantial will be done

Boomers have to be dead & buried, before our government will consider universal medical.

Did you all know that Truman had a plan for universal medical coverage that dovetailed with Social Security?...and I also think that Johnson planned to roll it into the Great Society plan, but in each case, an unpopular war and lowered approval ratings shot them down..each was followed by a republican who immediately file-13ed it.