David Himmelstein speaks
Why Not Universal National Health Insurance?
David Himmelstein, M.D.
kaisernetwork.org
National Congress on the Un and Underinsured
December 10-12, 2007
The conference is sponsored by the California HealthCare Foundation, the Commonwealth Fund, Harvard Health Policy Review, Health Affairs, the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, Inquiry and the Milbank Fund.
If you ask Americans what they want, 64 percent of us say we want national health insurance. If you ask Canadians… would they like a U.S. system, 3 percent would prefer it, which is their illiteracy rate.
http://www.kaisernetwork.org/health_cast/hcast_index.cfm?display=detail&hc=2283
(For David Himmelstein’s 35 minute presentation, fast forward the video to 1 hour and 45 minutes. For those preferring a transcript, it will be available at this link in the near future.)
Comment:
By Don McCanne, MD
Harvard professor and PNHP cofounder David Himmelstein presented his remarks following a roundtable discussion by the health policy representatives of the leading Republican and Democratic candidates for president (also included in the video at the link above).
Listening to the political roundtable, the issues were framed as if there were two fundamental proposals for reform - either build on our multipayer system primarily by expanding the use of private plans (Democrats), or allow market forces to resolve the issues (Republicans). But listening to them, you realize that the Republican proposals are those of inaction, so there seems to be only one choice and that is the Democratic plan.
But then David Himmelstein defines the actual problems that we are facing. At first blush it would seem that the two real options are either to expand our multipayer system, or to adopt a national health insurance program. But, by listening to him, it becomes clear that the Democratic proposal is also one of inaction - leaving in place all of the flaws that are impairing access, affordability and quality, pretending that our problems are solved by requiring the purchase of plans that we cannot afford with coverage that won’t prevent financial hardship.
He shows us that we really do have only one choice - adopt a universal national health insurance program. Any other choice brings us more hardship, suffering and even death.
(A positive note for advocates of health care justice: David received an enthusiastic standing ovation for his presentation.)