As you may know, H.R. 3200 was introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives on July 14th, 2009 by Congressman John Dingell. This bill is over 1,000 pages long and will cost at least one trillion dollars. It is promised to lower health care costs, give more choice to Americans regarding their care, and offer a higher quality of care. Unfortunately, this bill will do just the opposite of what is being promised.
At a time of record unemployment and mounting debts and deficits, this proposal sets the stage for more job losses by requiring small businesses and entrepreneurs to foot the entire bill for this health care expansion. A basic economic principle says that if you increase employers' costs up to 8 percent, as this bill would do, employers will cut costs by cutting jobs and salaries.
There are tax increases on small, medium and large employers. There are new mandates on individuals. There is an attempt to centralize control over health care benefits, but then jurisdiction is divided between about 10 different authorities. This will ensure endless delays and red-tape to getting individuals the care they need. There are also provisions that will result in less medical technology and innovation. Ultimately, we will spend between one and four trillion dollars and still will not achieve universal coverage. In short, I agree with the doctors from the Texas Medical Center who told me, "If Congress passes this bill, it will ruin the best healthcare system in the world." [Emphasis mine - jel]
You may like to know that I support the following principles when it comes health care. Health care reform must ensure quality coverage that is affordable and accessible for every American, regardless of pre-existing conditions; it must not force Americans into a new government-run health care plan that would eliminate coverage they receive from their employer; every American must have the right to choose the health plan that best fits their needs; lastly, medical decision must be made by patients and doctors, not government bureaucrats. I will continue to push these principles and work with colleagues to fight for Americans to get the coverage they deserve.
Again, I thank you for contacting me with your opinions and look forward to serving you. Please do not hesitate to contact my office in the future. If you would be interested in receiving my e-newsletter, or for other information, please visit sign up by visiting my website at http://mccaul.house.gov.
Once I got over my surprised at receiving a reply, I read through it. My head almost 'sploded when he shared that he agreed with the doctors from the Texas Medical Center who feel we have "the best healthcare system in the world." I couldn't let that statement go unchallenged, so I wrote back:
Mr. McCaul:
Thank you and your staff so very much for answering my recent communication with your office.
I think we support similar principles when it comes health care reform:
- Reform must ensure quality, affordable, accessible coverage for every American, regardless of pre-existing conditions.
- Reform must not force Americans into a government-run health care plan that would eliminate coverage they receive from their employer and which they find satisfactory.
- Every American must have the right to choose the health plan that best fits their needs.
- Medical decision must be made by patients and doctors... But we do differ here, as I do not support, as a one publication noted, health care decisions being made "by an entire team of insurance-company bureaucrats, whose bonuses and promotions depend on denying your claims and limiting your care."
And when your e-mail states: "In short, I agree with the doctors from the Texas Medical Center who told me, 'If Congress passes this bill, it will ruin the best healthcare system in the world,' I must admit sir that I'm at a complete loss.
That statement is not true factually. By many many measures, healthcare outcomes in the US are worse than in most other OECD nations - and at much much higher cost. Some sources for this data include the Congressional Research Service [1], and the OECD itself [2].
And this statement is not true morally. A recent study notes that 44,000 adults die in our country each year because they lack adequate health care coverage [3]. That's the equivalent of 14 9/11s every year, and a system that allows that is anything but "moral," let alone the "best."
If your office has data or ethical arguments showing how our system is the very best in the world, I would very much appreciate seeing that information.
Very Sincerely,
John Lyon
1. U.S. Health Care Spending: Comparison with Other OECD Countries
2. OECD Health Data 2006, from October 2006
3. Lack of insurance causes more than 44,000 U.S. deaths annually, study says
As before, I was somewhat surprised to received a reply, but even more surprised by the text. Or, rather, what was missing from the text:
October 13, 2009
Dear Mr. Lyon:
Thank you for contacting me with your views on HR 3200, the America's Affordable Health Choices Act. I appreciate your opinions that help guide and inform me in Congress.
As you may know, H.R. 3200 was introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives on July 14th, 2009 by Congressman John Dingell. This bill contains over 1,000 pages and will cost at least one trillion dollars. It is promised to lower health care costs, give more choice to Americans regarding their care, and offer a higher quality of care.
Unfortunately, this bill will do just the opposite of what is being promised.
At a time of record unemployment and mounting debts and deficits, this proposal sets the stage for more job losses by requiring small businesses and entrepreneurs to foot the entire bill for this health care expansion. A basic economic principle says that if you increase employers' costs up to 8 percent, as this bill would do, employers will cut costs by cutting jobs and salaries.
There are tax increases on small, medium and large employers. There are new mandates on individuals. There is an attempt to centralize control over health care benefits, but then jurisdiction is divided up between about 10 different authorities. This will ensure endless delays and red-tape to getting individuals the care they need. There are also provisions that will result in less medical technology and innovation. Ultimately, we will spend between one and four trillion dollars and still will not achieve universal coverage. [emphasis would be mine, if there were something here to emphasize - jel]
You may like to know that I support the following principles when it comes health care. Health care reform must ensure quality coverage that is affordable and accessible for every American, regardless of pre-existing conditions; it must not force Americans into a new government-run health care plan that would eliminate coverage they receive from their employer; every American must have the right to choose the health plan that best fits their needs; lastly, medical decision must be made by patients and doctors, not government bureaucrats. I will continue to push these principles and work with colleagues to fight for Americans to get the coverage they deserve.
Again, I thank you for contacting me with your opinions and look forward to serving you. Please do not hesitate to contact my office in the future. If you would be interested in receiving my e-newsletter, or for other information, please visit sign up by visiting my website at http://mccaul.house.gov.
I'll save you the search. The only substantive difference between the two messages is that in message from the 13th, the sentence that made my head explode, "In short, I agree with the doctors from the Texas Medical Center who told me, 'If Congress passes this bill, it will ruin the best healthcare system in the world,'" has been dropped. Even though I expressly called that statement out.
I don't know about you, but even setting aside political differences, I'd be happier with a congressional representative who, when asked to defend his views, doesn't respond by simply dropping what's been questioned and ignoring the question.
Constituents of Texas' 10th Congressional District deserve better.
P.S. - I'd still like Representative McCaul to explain how exactly our health care system is the best in the world. |
