No One's Falling for Big Health's Bogus Promise to "Reform"

By Joshua Holland, AlterNet. Posted May 13, 2009.

"Once a large number of citizens get their health care from the state, it dramatically alters their attachment to government," they wrote. "Every time a tax cut is proposed, the guardians of the new medical-welfare state will argue that tax cuts would come at the expense of health care -- an argument that would resonate with middle-class families entirely dependent on the government for access to doctors and hospitals."

Wavering Dems

The Obama administration insists that it is still intent on including a public option in thelegislation expected to make its way through Congress this year. But in recent weeks, key Senate Democrats, including Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus of Montana,  "Blue Dog" Ben Nelson of Nebraska and party newcomer Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania have signaled they would likely oppose the inclusion of a public-insurance option as part of a sweeping overhaul of our health care system. 

That's why the importance of a broad grassroots movement pushing Democrats to stand up to the insurance industry can't be overstated. The momentum is there. According to research cited by Democratic pollster Celinda Lake (PDF), 70 percent of Americans -- including almost 2 out of 3 Republicans -- want major reforms, with the choice of a public insurance plan open to everyone added to the current mix of Medicare, Medicaid and  private insurers.

But while the public overwhelmingly favors the public option now, history suggests that the insurance industry's ability to shape the debate can't be underestimated. The Christian Science Monitor noted, "when President Clinton first outlined his Health Security Plan, more than two-thirds of Americans initially supported the idea. Then the health insurance industry launched a massive advertising campaign opposing the plan. Within a year, support had plummeted, along with any chance of health care reform."

When Harry Truman proposed a national health insurance plan in 1945, 75 percent of Americans favored it, but again, says the Monitor, "after the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and medical groups attacked the plan as 'socialized medicine,' support sank" to almost nothing. 

If ordinary people don't get engaged at the grassroots level and push for a public-insurance choice, then anything approaching real health care reform will likely face a similar fate. But with significant pressure on members of Congress and the Obama administration to challenge the status quo, we might just be able to avert a looming public policy disaster.

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Joshua Holland is an editor and senior writer at AlterNet.

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