Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius insults voters’ intelligence with her op-ed in the Washington Post where she essentially tells readers not to sweat the details of the health care bill. Just pass it and the rest will work itself out. Trust me.
Health insurance is fundamentally about peace of mind. If you have good insurance, you don’t have to worry about an accident or sudden illness. You know that whatever happens, you and your family will be taken care of.
We can’t eliminate all disease. But through health reform, we can give every American access to quality, affordable health insurance so that if they do get sick, they have the best chance possible of getting better without bankrupting their families.
She’s right, but she fails to mention that “peace of mind” comes at a price. And people want to find the best insurance for their hard-earned money. When there are less insurance providers, there is less competition and policies become more expensive for the consumer. It’s basic economics.
President Obama and I are working closely with Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate and health-care experts to make sure we get the details of health reform right. But we can’t let the details distract us from the huge benefits that reform will bring. The urgency behind reform has nothing to do with the schedule of Congress and everything to do with the needs of the American people.
Nor should we let ourselves be distracted by attacks that try to use the complexity of health reform to freeze Americans in inaction. We’ve learned over the past 20 years that “socialized medicine” and “government-run health care” are code words for “don’t change anything.” With some insurers raising premiums by more than 25 percent and 14,000 people losing their health insurance every day, Americans want to hear something more from their leaders than “wait and see” and “more of the same.” People have enough to worry about these days. Americans deserve the peace of mind that only health-care reform can provide.
Then I’m not so sure about the Democrats’ efforts for bipartisan discussion. The President has said that he’s open to passing the health care bill even by the “reconciliation process,” where a Republican filibuster is not possible. Sebelius is mistaken to propose that details aren’t important in a bill that’ll transform the economy of America and the lives of Americans.
