Aside from another major terrorist attack, health care is one of the greatest issues faced by Americans today. Its rising expense leads to higher labor costs, the export of jobs overseas, and increased hidden costs to our nation's economic and social productivity.
So far, Congress, health insurers, and Big Pharma have pushed health-care legislation that has had little effect on the current state of our health coverage other than to fill their own pockets. Medicare Part D, one of the largest entitlements ever passed (and when I say "passed", I mean held for a three-hour vote following arm-twisting and outright bribery on the part of pharma- and insurance-supported GOP House members), bans the Federal Government from using its vast volume purchasing power to bargain for lower pharmaceutical costs. Worse, consumers are forced to pick from dozens of prescription drug plans, which, far from competing, maintain non-overlapping service that denies the right of consumers to switch, even if the plan changes prices or stops covering a needed drug.
This same "health services" industry that pushed for Part D, according to the New York Times, is now warmed up to Hillary Clinton.
Don't be fooled. The insurance and pharmaceutical industries have not changed overnight. They fully expect to have a "seat at the table" should Clinton run for President in 2008, and they hope to stave off any attempt to prevent them from continuing to rake in extraordinary profits.
Some entitlements are best left to the public sector. When did Clinton forget this?
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