Thursday, August 27, 2009

And The Debate Rages On...

Here is an interesting article from the Wall Street Journal, "The Whole Foods Alternative to Obamacare". It is an opinion piece written by John Mackey, the CEO of Whole Foods, and has thousands of people boycotting his store.
I think his train of thought is more of how we should direct reform (meaning, less government). He lists 8 ways to revise health care that leads to "...less government control and more individual empowerment." He describes his own company's health plan, and it reminded me of Safeway's plan. I agree with him that health care is not an intrinsic right rather, "... [A] service that we all need, but just like food and shelter it is best provided through voluntary and mutually beneficial market exchanges. A careful reading of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution will not reveal any intrinsic right to health care, food or shelter. That's because there isn't any. This 'right' has never existed in America."
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Here are the latest documents on Mayo Clinic's suggestions for reform. They believe that better reform means better service for money spent, and that all Americans should have access to health care. Their Point of View describes the path they believe health care reform needs to take and what needs to happen to ensure high quality care for all. Their Leadership Perspective is their current take on health care reform issues (paying for value, insurance for all, Medicare reform, and end-of-life care). They state, "If the "public plan" means a government‐run, price‐controlled, Medicare‐like insurance model, we do not support it because it has been shown over many years that such a model has not controlled costs and has punished doctors, hospitals and others that provide high‐quality, affordable care." Instead, they encourage a "public plan" modeled after the FEHBP. What is the FEHBP? Just read the article!

If you don't agree with Congress and Obama's direction for health care reform, you need to write/call/email your state representatives. Check out my sidebar for links to their sites, and do a search for your state. Let them know what you think.

2 comments:

  1. G, you're so smart. How do you have time read up on all of this, write a summary in an intelligle, easy-to-understand way and be a mom?:) You're amazing. Thanks for keeping me informed:)

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  2. Chels-
    Thanks! My guy has become pretty self sufficient, so I seem to have more time to read up on things.

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