Pennsylvania is in a unique position. She has a Single Payer Health Care Bill, HB 1660, that has a great chance to eventually pass in the House. Of all the State sponsored bills, this one is the strongest. This is a solid bill, one Pennsylvanians can trust that insurance companies will be fully exempt from corrupting. Democracy For America promoted house parties across the country November 14, where thousands of people watched Sicko, then listened to a conference call with film maker Michael Moore and DFA President Jim Dean for more than thirty minutes. Or if people were watching on the West Coast, they tuned into the conference call before they watched the DVD.
In any case, a certain percentage of watchers had never seen the movie before, so Jim Dean and Michael Moore were careful not to divulge key movie points. I saw Sicko for the third time that night and thoroughly enjoyed watching it with my Progressives For Pennsylvania friends, a handful of union leaders, and a few liberals I grew up with in my hometown. The conference call itself was inspiring. Michael Moore was asked about state sponsored versus federally sponsored bills, and which did he support. For instance, John Conyers and Dennis Kucinich have a National Single Payer Health Care Bill, H.
R.676. Moore said we need a National Single Payer bill, thus supported the Conyers/Kucinich bill. John Conyers has said he supports the bill here in Pennsylvania, HB 1660. Having said that, and given the current stranglehold on anything good coming out of Washington these days, I believe we have no choice but to develop a model Single Payer Health Care Bill that other States and eventually the Country are free to adopt.
Another point in the call was how the propaganda machines like to stop all discourse on a real Universal Health Care Plan that covers all Americans minus Insurance Companies, by stating that such plans are Socialized Medicine. Michael Moore said Single Payer is not Socialized Medicine, but rather is Christianized, Krishna-ized, Mohammad-ized Medicine because of the impetus for caring for every citizen in America in a true spirit of service. The question arose about the supposed waits that people have in the Canadian health care system, (although Canadians in the movie told us that they really don't have the waits that the propaganda machines in this country want us to believe). Moore said that when 50,000,000 people are taken out of the health care equation, obviously our waiting times at the doctors, those of us with Health Insurance, will obviously be shortened. When we add the 50,000,000 people back into the system, yes, we will have longer waiting times.
Isn't this preferable to making Health Care unavailable to so many millions of citizens? Governor Rendell of Pennsylvania has a Health Bill before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives called Prescription for Pennsylvania. This bill is losing support with only 8 sponsors as of this writing. HB 1660 currently has 35 sponsors. Why is HB 1660 superior to Prescription For Pennsylvania? HB 1660 guarantees health care protection for all Pennsylvanians thus delivering quality, comprehensive health care.
Rendell's plan does not. HB 1660 takes Insurance Companies out of the equation. Rendell's plan does not. HB 1660 preserves the rights of patients to choose their own doctors with out deductibles, co-pays or life-time caps. Rendell's plan does not. HB 1660 allows for prescription drug and behavioral health care coverage.
The Rendell plan does not. Alternative Medical Modalities are allowed in the HB 1660 plan. Not so with Rendell's plan.
A comprehensive comparison between the two plans can be accessed at: http://www.progressives4pennsylvania.com Progressives4Pennsylvania plans to create teaching workshops about HB 1660 and present these to Labor affiliated groups, retirement homes, small businesses and other potential arenas. Health Care For All Americans started with a vision that Pennsylvania birthed and now shares with the nation.
John Edwards is the only candidate running for President who has a plan to deliver health care to all Americans without the interference of Insurance Companies. He needs Health Care Reform Activists to work with him. He cannot do it alone.
And neither can we.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Kate Loving Shenk is a writer, healer, musician and the creator of the e-book called "Transform Your Nursing Career and Discover Your Calling and Destiny." Click here to find out how to order the e-book: http://www.nursingcareertransformation.com Check Out Kate's Blog: http://www.nursehealers.typepad.com -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
