health care reform: the long view

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it's all too easy to get sucked into the political debate of the moment and to fall into the trap of thinking that our entire future hinges on this one vote, or that one bill.

sure, there's plenty at stake depending on what actually becomes law this go-round, assuming we manage to enact anything at all. even beyond health insurance, much of president obama's political clout depends on getting something -- really, anything -- passed that sounds like health reform of some sort.

but in the long run, health insurance reform, and actual health CARE reform, will become vastly easier if we successfully pass ANYTHING. once we have enacted a "major reform law" it becomes so much easier to revise and update the law down the road. some things will obviously work well and there will be a movement to expand that. other things will not work well and there will be a hue and cry to fix it.

the point is that this is not the final chapter in getting our country's health care system right. there will be more chapters written, by more congresses and more presidents.

by all means, let's continue to push for the best bill possible. but remember the big picture. to reach any ultimate destination, you must start with the first step.