And here I was getting all riled up about the death of single payer, the death of the public option, the increased troop presence in Afghanistan, the continued war in Iraq, the sneaky route to a war in Pakistan, the continuation of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the unfulfilled promise to close Guantanamo, the lack of accountability for any of the past 8 years' flagrant breaking of laws, etc. But there's a proposal to allow even more people to play in the health insurance ponzi scheme?

Well, never mind the sore feelings, and keep up the great work!

Day after day, this continues to be a fight between people fighting for profoundly American principles and people fighting for more profit for their corporate benefactors. Unfortunately, the debate continues to be completely misrepresented by the corporate media as a fight between the McCoys and the Hatfields with no real weight or substance on either side -- just competing slogans, which always gives the advantage to the right.

It would be as if the Republicans were fighting for the rights of corporate factories to dump toxic waste into our rivers and lakes... oh, wait, they *do* fight for that...

I keep freaking out the nurses at work.

Today I had a pulse of 36 again.

They're surprised I can even stand up.

...another gift to the tail-end of the boomer generation.

If the kids don't get some kind of real HCR, and the boomers receive yet another gift, we're really setting the stage for some serious age-warfare in the decades to come.

Note to Washington: people under 45 aren't going to accept being slaves just because you chose to 'buy' votes.

/Sanders amendment. Apparently he introduced his amendment last Thursday and it's hard to tell when the debate/vote will be. I honestly don't know how any senator can stand up and argue against Single Payer. Should make for some interesting CSPAN coverage.

As to the notion of extending Medicare to those 55 and over/60 and over, that bone won't pacify me. Plus notice there is no mention of how much it will COST! I would guess the buy-in would be comparable to getting a private insurance quote.

I agree with you Susie. This doesn't pacify this Progressive at all. And throwing everyone else under the bus isn't an option.

Regardless of what is being cooked up by Reid and Co., I will continue to fight for Single Payer as the only just and truly affordable health care delivery system that would essentially rid us of the "for-profit" health insurance corporate monsters once and for all. I want to live to see a stake driven through their hearts.

“Medicare for All Public Option”
A lot has been said about HC reform. Some standard issues/items everyone seems to agree on….
Folks who have Medicare like it.
Politicians don’t want to touch Medicare.
Insurance Companies say Medicare competes unfairly.
Doctors and Hospitals want higher payment rates from Medicare.
A new “Public Option” is toxic to some politicians.
Here’s a solution, I think, to all these problems. It’s a plan to provide Medicare to those without access to Health Insurance. It provides higher payment rates to hospitals and doctors based on age of the patient. Here’s an example of the pay rates.
Age 65 and over, pay rates remain the same and are adjusted as they are now. All citizens qualify as they do now.
Ages 60-64 Medicare pay rates +5%, Hospitals and doctors are reimbursed at the current Medicare rate +5%. Co-pays are $5 Medical and Pharmaceutical. The government can negotiate pharmaceutical costs to establish baseline.
Ages 55-59 Medicare + 10%, Co-pays $10
Ages 50-54 Medicare +15%, Co-pays $15
Ages 45-49 Medicare +20%, Co-pays $20
You can move the scale further downward in 5 year/5%/$5 increments until it reaches a point where Medicare rates are on par, but competitive enough, to put pressure on Insurance company rates.
Maybe: Under age 44 Medicare + 25%, Co-pays $25
Married couples should get a discount on the second adult. Each could get their own card for pay schedule and rates. And Medicare should have a child benefit to add on for parent/child and family coverage.
The buy in program has to be non-profit.
Insurance companies should lose their anti-trust exemption.
Medicare buy-in and Insurance companies follow same rules, ex. Pre-existing-conditions, etc.
An insurance exchange should be created and it should include Medicare.
There should be a HC mandate for everyone with subsidies on a sliding scale. That’s a different plan.

Positives
NO CHANGE TO CURRENT HEALTH CARE!!
Hospitals/Doctors get higher reimbursement. Insurance companies could compete.

PROBLEM SOLVED!!

There is no reason they can't do both.

Lower the age AND have a public option.

The two are not mutually exclusive.

We need to get very vocal and demand both?

Or just lower the age to zero and let's include prenatal too.

It really is that simple.

I'm hearing two things - ONE - that they're considering lowering the age (as noted here) and - TWO - that they're considering letting others "buy into" medicare.

Is there any chance that this will be an option for those between 55 and 65 to "buy into" medicare?

And we leave the rest of the country high and dry then?
*

(And I hope my kids remember that when it comes time to "reform" Social Security.)

Anytime the word REFORM is used in the context of the Republicrats and a social program, it means reform as in KILL.

Just mentioning it…

I have three children. They're in college and working. Right now in Illinois, they're eligible for our insurance until age 27.

Then they too have to worry about the current American health care system which is ... unsustainable, egregiously immoral, chronically ineffective and completely unaffordable.

I guess the plus side on this is that they won't have to worry about our doctor bills when they can't even afford their own.
*

... into the discussion, and it's only as a way to limit a public option.

But hey, at least it's in the discussion, sort of....

Seems to be a big problem these days.

If we are forced to buy Health Insurance and the Doc's are in the pocket of Health Insurance companies how's that work out?

It'll leave a small slice of the pie to insurance companies who want to provide medigap coverage.

my idea offers medicare to all ages, it essentially is a single payer public option, no need for a "new" public option.

It should be available to anyone allowed to buy on the exchange, people forced to buy their own insurance, self proprietors and very small businesses.
One other point, If insurance costs continue to rise out of control, and they will, you can trigger making it availale to larger and larger businesses.
The key is to get across the board coverage then future triggers are easy to implement,

I'm talking about Universal Single Payer health care for every American. And throw out every politician who isn't fighting for all they're worth for that.

The central point behind every true progressive effort is, "I'm not willing to let ______ fall behind to make things easier for me." (That's why we seem to be such easy prey for divide-and-conquer strategies, I believe.) The most problematic part of this pseudo-proposal is just that, your son and I and millions of others will only gain benefit from it if it creates a large enough change in healthcare *delivery* to bring prices down. That's a ludicrous expectation given the terms of debate right now, so it's just not good enough. Ergo, our only option is to keep yapping about the public option or some equivalent that *actually delivers equivalent benefits* to the public. So, in my own verbose way, thanks for agreeing that we (the personal we, as in me and my peers) don't deserve to take the fall in order to get necessary reforms for the 55-64 crowd. And know that we feel the same way when it's your interests at stake.

This is a ploy, and one that has come directly out of the Healthcare Insurers Files under "Expanding profit through government programs" Insurance companies cover many many working seniors through their employers- BUT what many do not realize is when a physicians bill comes in to be paid the AGE of the person is checked- if that person is medicare eligible, over 65, the claim is denied because medicare is supposed to pay first. There is so much BS and little policy maneuvers by these companies. It is unbelievable. Expanding medicare would be great, if it were for every one. Why not? They work through HMO's so the insurance companies get their cut anyway and people get care. State mandates protect individuals healthcare by forcing the insurance to pay for basic care and screening. But, the Government HAS to be able to negotiate costs with the carriers and the pharmacutical industry. When someone goes out and buys a policy for themselves they only see a tiny bit of what the contract contains. These companies have thick policy contracts no one sees and no one except them are allowed to see. Workers such as claim processors are forbidden from giving the info to the policy holder. This is why people get so shocked, suprised and upset when they are told ;Little Amy's asthma is a precondition- denied.' 'Your hospital stay wasn't approved for 4 days, we will only pay 3.' We have no current contract with your doctor- denied' No one knows their rights or what they purchase and it is dynamic- the insurance company can change their policies and their coverage even AFTER you have signed the dotted line. I could write a book. Oh look, I almost have... X-industry employee