JAMA – The Journal of the American Medical Association
August 13, 2003 Editorial
Universal Health Insurance – Let the Debate Resume By Rashi Fein, PhD
The article by The Physicians’ Working Group for Single-Payer NationalHealth insurance in this issue of THE JOURNAL should re-energize the much needed debate on universal health insurance.
Whether one agrees or disagrees with the approach that nearly 8000 physicians and medical students have endorsed, this group has provided a considerable service by fanning the almost extinguished spark called universal health insurance. Perhaps the most noteworthy aspect of this article is that by offering its approach, the Physicians’ Working Group issues a challenge: those who reject its “solution” are challenged to present its own, better and stronger one as a replacement. Thus, it will not suffice simply to dismiss the Physicians’ Working Group solution as unworkable. The American health care system and American society face a real problem and are compelled to search for an answer.
Now is the time to reopen that discussion. The members of the Physicians’ Working Group have done their job by raising the issue of national health
insurance once again. Those who like their proposal should join with them.
Those who do not should develop and propose something better, more effective, and with fewer untoward side effects. No one should sit back and bemoan the existing state of affairs. The “health care mess” is too real for anyone to ignore it.
http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/290/6/818
The abstract of the proposal:
http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/290/6/798
The full proposal:
http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/290/6/798
To view the list of endorsers:
For physicians who wish to add their endorsement:
http://www.physiciansproposal.org/