Feingold Down On Health Care Reform Passage
But is it his own fault? More on that soon…
First, from Lakeland Times:
“Nobody is going to bring a bill before Christmas, and maybe not even then, if this ever happens,” Feingold said. “The divisions are so deep. I never seen anything like that.”
Feingold reiterated his appraisal a bit later.
“We’re headed in the direction of doing absolutely nothing, and I think that’s unfortunate,” he said when asked about the plight of uninsured Americans.
Now here’s the thing…if Feingold and his fellow Dems would get behind health care co-ops then they could pass something. So I don’t understand the notion of letting this bill die if co-ops can serve a similar purpose as the public option. After all, we’re talking about competition, right?
Also, perhaps folks are forgetting bi-partisan solutions like Wyden-Bennett. Perhaps that isn’t as feasible as co-ops because it forces people out of employer sponsored insurance and gives them a tax break to buy their own, but it still has bipartisan support. AND it gets rid of the preexisting condition clause. Win, win.
Here’s the question: Since there are obviously solutions out there that have bipartisan support and could reform our system, if Dems can’t get behind them, well, whose fault is that?
(Photo: Getty via Daylife)
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Bipartisanship? What’s so great about bipartisanship? Is there nothing to be gained by winning elections anymore? For fuck’s sake – the Democrats won the elections and the Republicans are still getting their way on policy! What the hell is this?!?
With a majority in the both houses, and a Dem in the White House, I don’t know why the Democrats would even consider anything the Republicans come up with. They (Dems) gave half the store away from the beginning, by not letting single payer have consideration, and the Republicans haven’t given an inch! A strong public option IS the reasonable compromise and the Dems should tell the Republicans to get on board with it or get the fuck out of the way! And they should tell the blue dogs to get on board or go be Republicans! This is getting ridiculous!
There’s no sense in passing bullshit legislation just to say you passed something. Sometimes – nothing is better than something.
To answer…
Bipartisanship isn’t good in and of itself, but since Dems can’t get the bill passed with 60 votes they have to find a bill that they can pass with 60 votes. The Blue Dogs simply won’t budge. Therefore, you need to be able to bring them and some Republicans over the table. It’s possible. The two bills I talked about can be spun up quickly, although Wyden-Bennett is much harder to do because it would break Obama’s promise of nobody losing their health care. Under that scenario EVERYBODY would lose their health care who has it through an employer and they’d have to buy it themselves with money given to the them via tax credits. A tough political sell, but I’d take the trade.
Also, if you think the public option has been tough to sell, then try proposing REAL government run health care. You’re “get the fuck out of the way” talk is a good sound bite and it might feel good to say, but it will do nothing to actually get legislation passed. I’m not saying this to be snide, but passing health care through the reconciliation process would be bad news as, by law, it would have to be split up into its component parts. I’m sure you’ve read about this recently. It’s a recipe for disaster.
Another point, as mentioned, the other bills are not bullshit legislation. They’re real solutions that could solve a lot of problems. As Obama mentioned, the public option is one piece of health care reform, it’s not THE piece of health care reform. There are other ways to address the costs, get everybody into the system and make private insurance companies drop the preexisting condition clause. But don’t take my word for it…go read Wyden-Bennett for yourself. Check out liberal bloggers that give it a thumbs up.
For instance…
Matthew Yglesias…”I like the Wyden-Bennett bill and sort of think that in a better world this is the kind of thing the Senate would be acting on.”
Ezra Klein…”I’m on the record in my admiration for the Wyden-Bennett health reform plan. I think it’s better than what Barack Obama offered during the campaign and better than what we’re likely to get come the end of this process.”
So, in the end, if Dems can’t pass a bill it’s not because there weren’t workable alternatives on the table. That’s the only point I’m making here. If you want nothing more than compromise, well, fair enough. I don’t.
after a very quick reading this morning, I have some questions:
Under Wyden-Bennett, the money would be withheld by the federal government, then given to the states because they administer the program, then given to the private insurers, and finally, I presume, to the healthcare provider.
My first question is the one being asked by Rep. Wiener of NY regarding the current system – What, of any value, do the insurance companies bring to this system? Seems to me that, under W-B, the insurerance companies will serve no other purpose than to take a cut, much like they do now. What in W-B controls the size of the insurers’ cut and how that cut is spent via obnoxious pay and bonuses to execs?
How does adding more middle men to the system bring down costs? W-B replaces my employer’s role in the money trail with the fed and state governments? No? How does this save money?
How does W-B control costs if there’s nothing in it to specifically….. control costs? How does it bring down the prices of procedures, drugs, administrative costs, etc.? I don’t see it.
In response to another comment. See in context »