Kuehl's "Medicare for All Californians" Passes Senate Health Committee Before Standing Room Only Crowd

This is a fantastic article Randy. May I have your permission to put it into my Chapter Newsletter?

Thanks Janelle. I'll contact you by email.

I'm in Los Angeles today with my brother's widow and his baby, born last autumn after his death in August — a death directly attributable to our country's shameful healthcare "system."

I'd be surprised if every family in America today didn't have one or more members who are uninsured or underinsured. We are all at risk — if not of dying (although that too, don't kid yourself) then of financial catastrophe. Everyone needs to get involved. It's a matter of saving lives and saving families. The insurance industry will bring millions of dollars to bear in the coming propaganda barrage where they'll do their best to make us confused and frightened.

Please, California, make this happen. The scary option is what we have right now.

Making it out of committee is an important first step. Medicare for all Californians makes so much sense.
SB 840: the time has come!!!

SB840 is the only way we can really fix this broken health care system. Partial solutions, required insurance etc just won't do it. And it saves money too!

Dear Randy,

Thank you for writing and informing others about the support that SB840 and SB1014 has from the people.

The Governor would have no choice, but to sign this historic legislation in to law, if only the press would give this issue the coverage it deserves. The press seems to be working for the insurance industry and buries any information deep inside their publications.

Please get your article in other publications.

Keep up the coverage.

I support this bill almost wholeheatedly. I do believe that businesses should not foot any part of this bill except if they voluntarily wish to do so. Businesses, especially small businesses, that do not currently cover their employers,would be burdened by an additional cost above what they now pay for other required benefits(Soc. Security, unemployment, workers comp. etc.). Some might have to close their businesses should they be shouldered with yet another cost. Those businesses that wish to continue to cover their employees could opt to do so. I've supported and worked for Single Payer coverage for the past 13 years or so even though I'm and insurance agent who sells health insurance. I have seen first hand the increasing premiums and decreasing benefits dictated by the current system. It's past time for a change. As far as destroying an industry, I say, they made their bed - let them lie in it, and wallow in the profits they've made these many years.

I find it ironic that I work in the healthcare field as a Radiological Technologist, and I am unable to afford health insurance coverage. Furthermore, even if I could miraculously afford health insurance coverage, I have been told by several insurance agencies, that they will not provide coverage due to the fact that I have a pre-existing condition. The only way I can obtain health insurance coverage is to open up my own business and hire a couple of employees to work for me. Then, by law, the state (California) has to allow me to obtain health insurance coverage for me and my employees.

I wonder how many Americans, especially those who have served in Iraq, have to accept death over life, because he/she cannot gain access to healthcare via the lack of, or inadequate healthcare insurance coverage? If you notice, you rarely hear about this type of decision individuals have to make everyday through the news media.

How does this play into the proposal the governor has planned? I am preparing and doing research for a persuavive specch and my topic is on health care reform. Any info to help would be greatly appreciated. I am 53 years of age and due to a severe industrial injury I find myself back in college trying to finish and recieve my BS in Business. If you could shed some light it would be really neat. I desire to inform the college student of current proposals' and what they can do to issue support.
Sincerely,
John Harris

Here's another health insurance conundrum:

As is well-documented, Magna Entertainment Corp and Liberty Mutual Insurance have blatantly conspired to deny Workers' Compensation benefits to an injured employee. MEC terminated the employee for filing for Workers' Compensation. MEC/LM have delayed paying any Workers' Comp benefits for four years, while the employee languishes in pain, unemployed, uninsured, and still injured.

Now that employee cannot get individual health insurance because of the Work Comp injury. The employee cannot get a job to get group health insurance because of the injury and the illegal termination.

Universal health insurance is the only way this California employee can get much needed, much wanted health insurance.

If anyone has a direct comment to me or can help with this dilemma for this employee, email me at ashleighkatz@aol.com anytime.

Randy,
This is an excellent Blog and I am forwarding it to our Health Care for All members. For your bloggers, SB840 was written by our organization, Health Care for All-California by Judy Spelman, RN in collaboration with many stakeholders. Doctors wrote Chapter 6, Delivery of Care. I have been told by a leader in the health insurance industry that 840 is extremely well written.
It is historic that a purely volunteer, grassroots organization got a detailed Single Payer health care reform bill through both houses of the legislature to a Governor's desk. We did not have a paid employee, Andrew McGuire, until after all the lobbying had been done. We had to hold Demonstrations outside DEMOCRAT legislators offices in order to get Yes votes out of Democrats(pretty sad).
Because Sen. Kuehl is so collaborative she has allowed input from anyone who has concerns about sections of the bill. There is a whole "quality of care" section. We don't just want to change the financing of health care from a profit-driven model to a fair,humanitarian model but also to create a) an effective system of care delivery and b) one that meets high standards of care.
The words "evidence-based medicine" are in the bill and what that means is that there are treatments that are effective based on scientific evidence and that is currently the system that is practiced in institutions that want to deliver the best care. After 840 is passed the bad licensed health care providers will be weeded out. Consumers will have the ability to file complaints about poor care. Everyone can choose their primary care provider so the good ones will get the business.
We are holding events in 365 cities between Aug. 06 to Aug. 07 to educate the public about 840. Please visit our website http://www.onecarenow.org to find out about events in your area. The one in Mt. View is May 18,for instance. We also have an excellent 22 minute documentary which highlights the health care crisis with patients who have suffered from the current "system" and politicians who say that it is the only solution. It is urgent that it be passed so no more people die due to an unjust system. That video can be seen on YouTube or be purchased online on that website. You can also sign our petition to send to the legislature and Governor how many people support 840.

The governer's plan falls far short in this excellent comparision with 840: http://www.healthcareforall.org/blog/?p=266

Why not leave the majority of healthcare plans in the private sector? The problem isn't the system as much as it that a lot of people don't want to pay for insurance, they just want it "given" to them for free like they think it is in Canada.

When I was in Toronto 2 years ago, they were having a national meeting in Ottowa on the news, with all the Premiers of the Provinces in attendance. They were saying how screwed up their system was and a number of them wanted to privatize it like the US system. I couldn't believe my ears, but the next week not a mention of this in the US press.

My aunt was Canadian and she died in her living room waiting for a heart operation. I also know a number of Canadians and they tell me their system is great if you're basically healthy. The problem is in seeing specialists and having advanced tests and procedures.

Canadians do not get "free" health insurance either. They pay a lot in taxes for it. They do not have an earmarked tax for it, but they pay much higher taxes as a percentage of income than we do. Somehow people like Michael Moore get on TV shows like Leno and say we need "free insurance" from the government. There is no such thing as free, I guess unles you're on welfare. But people hear this and people always want to believe there is a free lunch waiting to be had.

I also hear Michael Moore on TV saying how Cuba's health care system is so wonderful and free. Then I see where Cuba's oldest woman is age 105, and her assets are frozen in the US, and she says she needs the money for doctors and medicine. (The story is she married a Cuban who moved her to Havana, then Casto nationalized her families company, and took all their Cuba based assets, except her house. Kind of sounds like what Clinton and Obama want to do. Take over all the assets and wipe out an entire industry and all the jobs that go along with it. Of course all of those jobs will be replaced by new government bureaucracies needed to oversee our "new" government run system.

People also forget or don't know that the Medicare doesn't pay it's fair share anyway, and that people still need to buy Medicare Supplements, and Part D Rx coverage in order to be fully covered. Additionly there is a premium paid to the government for Part B of Medicare.

The answer is to not have the government "take over" our healthcare just so Hillary can have a ton of PCP's and get rid of the Specialists. It's hard enough to get in to see a Specialist MD now.

The answer is to do something along the lines of Mass. whereby every citizen has to be responsible to be covered. If you cannot prove 12 months of qualified creditable coverage when you file your tax return, you will be required, (subject to a means test), to pay the national health care tax. (which shouldn't be a bargain). So, if you can validate coverage for say 8 months, but went "bare" for 4 months, you must pay into the system when you file your 1040 for the 4 months you were "bare".

This way the hospitals can then bill the gov't for uninsured claims. As it stand now under EMTALA, the gov't requires treatement at ER dept's regardless of the ability to pay. The problem is they never do pay, so in effect we do already have national health insurance.

This also solves all the problem whereby someone couldn't get covered. If someone doesn't have a job or quits their job, and can't afford the COBRA premiums, and they can't qualify for an individual plan due to medical reasons, they are automatically covered by the government. If they have the ability to pay, (based on a means test), then they have to pay. It's that simple.

80% of us have under $1000 a year in claims. It's the other 20% that have real problems. So, it's particularly easy for younger, healthier people to skip paying insurance premiums. Maybe they need to be force to pay something and cut back on their lattes and maxed out cable TV bills.

This way EVERYONE is insured, (except I have a problem with illegal aliens getting in on this,...maybe we should bill the Mexican gov't for their care). And EVERYONE has to pay something, (based on a means test).

The hospitals now are getting some money on everyone who walks in the door, the insurance companies can lower rates because they are receiving more premiums to offset the 20 percent of those with large claims. No one (at least US Citizens), is left without coverage due to health conditions. And best of all we haven't created another huge gov't bureaucracy.

But people will still whine and complain,....I don't want to be "forced" to buy health insurance. These people somehow feel it's their God given right to health care and that hospitals and Md's should treat them for free. Yet these same people probably wouldn't do what they do for a living without being paid for it. But they expect a Medical Doctor to work on them for free? Man, that really makes sense.

If you can't tell I'm big on personal responsibility. It's what originally made this country great. Unfortunately, we are sliding more and more toward Socialism. The more you "give" people them less they have a will to go out and work and achieve. It's basic human nature.

I've read several of the other blogs on the single payer system. Part of the interesting thing I find is the "high standards of care" provision. Just how is that metric going to be measured? And if all the MD's that don't measure up to these new metrics are eliminated, how will there be enough MD's to satisfy our nation's need for this new "free" health care?

It's hard enough now to get in to see a specialist as it is.

And if the goverment denies your treatment can you sue them? I guess you can write complaint letters to them.

If a doctor isn't a good doctor now you can certainly vote with your wallet and go elsewhere. We don't need national health insurance for that.

The main complaints are basically the same two:

1. The premiums are too high
2. People can't qualify due to pre-existing conditions

If hospitals and MD's had zero bad debt, they could charge less! That's basic business and economics.

How would that happen? The government would reimburse them for those that don't pay! As it stands now, the gov't mandates coverage at the ER under EMTALA. This is the only industry in America where the government says you MUST provide your service, and you still have LIABILITY for that service, and your customer does not, and probably won't pay you. What a deal for health care providers!

You solve 1 and 2 above by:

Making everyone pay into the system, and having the government be the insurer of last resort. This eliminates all those who can't get coverage.

By forcing people to pay the "national health care tax" they will become much more appreciative of those employers who provide group coverage.

If you are an employer that doesn't want to then don't do it, but there should be a penalty if you don't provide it. So, you make your employees either buy individual plans or pay the "national health care tax". My belief is that those employers who do provide coverage will benefit in that their employees will be more loyal and appreciative of their employer.

Part of the problem with the Mass. plan is that employer's who "opt out" only have to pay a $30 per month penalty per employee, which is way too low in my opinion.

So, now everyone is covered, there's no bad debt that needs to be "cost shifted" to the insured population, and rates are stable and much lower because we've added 45 million people to the pool paying premiums. (based on a means test).

I realize that those that are broke or unemployed with no assets need to be subsidized. But we don't need to subsidize a millionare who retires early and wants free health care.

The thing is even if the government totally took over, which is what some people want to happen, that is a slippery slope due to unintended consequences, such as MD's no longer wanting to practice medicine under the "new" guidelines, and a doctor shortage evolving.

The answer is to keep it as in the private sector but force everyone, and I mean everyone, to play the game. None of this going without coverage then running to the ER when you need something, then getting it for free and then not paying anything.

There will always be those people in our society who work for cash, don't report their income, and don't pay their fair share of taxes as well. They will get subsidized health insurace under this system, but maybe someday they will have to answer to the IRS about all of that.

The thing I never hear ANYONE mention, here or anywhere else, how much taxes I or anyone who pays taxes will pay under the single payer system.

According to the Heartland Institue, someone in Canada who makes $200,000 per year pays approx. $125,000 in taxes, and of that $25,000 goes toward health insurance.

So someone says, I don't make that much, well your Canadian neighbor is still paying at a least 10% of their income into the healthcare system.

So, if the government will have to tax us to provide these benefits, why should anyone complain about being "forced" to pay premiums? If you don't earn any money you don't pay taxes anyway, and under my plan you still wouldn't pay.

It's very simple, you either have a private plan through your employer, an individually purchase plan, or else you must pay the "national health care tax" for the months during the year you weren't covered.

If youd didn't work or were disabled you would still be covered. But we need EVERYONE who is working and able bodied to pay into the system or be covered somewhere in order for this to work.

It won't work unless people are forced to participate. People will say they don't want to be forced to participate, which makes zero sense because if we get single payer universal health care they are going to be force to participate whether they like it not.

The big lie from politicians and people like Michael Moore is that it will be free. It's like a mantra, from people who are like zombies,...It's from the gov't, therefore it's free.

This country would last one year if all of didn't voluntarily pay our taxes. I pay plenty of taxes and am glad to do my fair share, but I think others need to also do their fair share.

Of those 45 million famous ininsured's running around there, I'm sure quite a few of them could afford to pony up something, since they aren't paying any premiums now. How do I know that? Because if they're "uninsured" how could they be paying any premiums?

The idea of big government getting bigger just turns some people on I guess. So we can just replace private sector inefficency with government bureaucracy and inefficency.

I'm really excited about SB 840, but we have to continue pushing for it for something to happen. We can't let the HMOs use their army of lawyers to prevent this from becoming a reality. To that end, I think it's important to support organizations that are helping reaise money for SB 840.

I found a website called www.insurancetease.com that sells funny t-shirts mocking the health insurance corporations. $1 for every shirt sold goes directly to support SB 840. I also noticed that www.healthcareforall.org has a search engine that generates 3 cents for every search done on it. For some searches, it's better than google (it takes out the redundant Ebay posts).

Also, we are in desperate need of more rallies. Let the people unite and let their feelings about healthcare be known. God knows we need some decent healthcare in this country.

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