Paul Krugman: Harry, Louise and Barack

[cal04]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/11/opinion/11krugman.html?_r=1

Is this the end for Harry and Louise?

Harry and Louise were the fictional couple who appeared in advertisements run by the insurance industry in 1993, fretting about what would happen if “government bureaucrats” started making health care decisions. The ads helped kill the Clinton health care plan, and have stood, ever since, as a symbol of the ability of powerful special interests to block health care reform.

But on Saturday, excited administration officials called me to say that this time the medical-industrial complex (their term, not mine) is offering to be helpful.

Six major industry players — including America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), a descendant of the lobbying group that spawned Harry and Louise — have sent a letter to President Obama sketching out a plan to control health care costs. What’s more, the letter implicitly endorses much of what administration officials have been saying about health economics.

Are there reasons to be suspicious about this gift? You bet — and I’ll get to that in a bit. But first things first: on the face of it, this is tremendously good news.

(snip)
I would strongly urge the Obama administration to hang tough in the bargaining ahead. In particular, AHIP will surely try to use the good will created by its stance on cost control to kill an important part of health reform: giving Americans the choice of buying into a public insurance plan as an alternative to private insurers. The administration should not give in on this point.

But let me not be too negative. The fact that the medical-industrial complex is trying to shape health care reform rather than block it is a tremendously good omen. It looks as if America may finally get what every other advanced country already has: a system that guarantees essential health care to all its citizens.

[DJ13]

1. Bullcrap

"The fact that the medical-industrial complex is trying to shape health care reform rather than block it is a tremendously good omen. It looks as if America may finally get what every other advanced country already has: a system that guarantees essential health care to all its citizens."


They plan on keeping 4 fingers in the pie instead of all 5.

Thats not real reform, thats just a slightly modified version of the same dysfunctional system we already have.

[Canuckistanian]

5. Right. They don't want to be a part of reform, they want to kill it

No matter what fancy proposals they bring, they know that if there's ever a public option, they're sunk.

Once people learn the overwhelming benefits of publicly financed health care, they ain't going back to to those criminals known as "health insurers".

[TahitiNut]

2. The 'public option' MUST be non-negotiable.

I'm damned near certain, however, the AHIP views it that way as well. If there's ANY way it's left in, it'll be as crippled and FUBAR'd as totaled Edsel. The health insurers would do anything to prevent a Medicare-like option.

[Metta]

3. Good insight backed with the facts, as always.

:toast: He should be running Treasury not those Wall St. traitors.

[Oregone]

4. This whole "reform" is a damn joke

Wake up. You people are being taken for a ride