Voice of the Mid-Columbia | Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, Wash. |
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closeOn behalf of the Hanford Atomic Metal Trades Council and the 3,000-plus working men and women we represent, I would like to address a topic that is being argued around the country - health care reform.
Medical costs contributed to 62 percent of all bankruptcies in this country in 2007, according to a study published in the American Journal of Medicine.
Health care premiums are rising more than twice as fast as the inflation rate, according the the Kaiser Family Foundation.
According the the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 45 million people in this country lack health insurance. A study by Families USA found that 2.3 million people in this country lose their health insurance annually.
The Urban Institute estimates that 22,000 people die every year in this country because they lack health care insurance.
Here is what the AFL/CIO is reporting:
w Profits for drug makers are up almost 20 percent, compared with 6.3 percent for all Fortune 500 companies.
w Health insurance company profits have increased 1,084 percent in 5 years.
w Pharmaceutical company CEOs average $4.36 million a year in compensation. Health insurance company CEOs average $8.75 million a year. Aetna's Ronald Williams brings in more than $32 million a year alone.
And one last fact, health insurance and pharmaceutical companies are spending $1.4 million a day to defeat health care reform in this country, according to Common Cause.
That's not a misprint, $1.4 million each and every day.
Any rational person has to ask themselves why. The answer simply is greed. The companies are raking in billions, denying claims because of pre-existing conditions, and working Americans are dying.
Why is this acceptable for Americans? Have we fallen so far and completely bought into the concept of "I've got mine, to hell with everyone else?"
The sad answer to that question appears to be yes, even though the vast majority of Americans are one catastrophic illness or accident away from financial ruin.
The system is broken and needs to be fixed, but how? The insurance and pharmaceutical companies have bought and paid for one entire political party in this country and approximately one-third of the other. It will only get worse until we the people start holding our elected officials accountable.
We the people need to start asking the tough questions. We the people need to start demanding better from Congress. We the people need to stop being complacent. We the people need to stop believing the lies being spread by the insurance companies and the congressmen and senators they've bought.
Does anyone seriously believe that President Obama wants to kill off senior citizens in this country? Does anyone seriously believe in all this death panel nonsense? It's time to put the politics away and fix this problem.
Don't make your decision based on what you heard from Rush Limbaugh or Keith Olberman. Do your own research. Get the facts from neutral, unbiased sources. Check out what the former vice president of Cigna is saying about this.
And if all else fails, think!
Get involved in a civil debate on the issue. Showing up at a town hall meeting with your mind already made up and shouting down anyone who dares to see things differently than you helps no one but the insurance companies.
Pick up a history book. The Republican Party has been screaming socialism since the 1940s. Now, they are drumming up lies about rationing and the evils of government run health care.
News flash, America. Medicare is government run health care. So is the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Change isn't easy. Change always brings up questions. Change always stirs up unrest and the insurance companies are using fear tactics to exploit those feelings for their own gain.
Some people see the need for health care reform but worry about their taxes being raised to pay for it. The truth is, most Americans have this fear and it's a valid argument.
That is precisely why we need to have this debate in a civil and productive fashion. We need to ensure that reform is done in a fair and equitable way that will benefit all Americans and not put an unneeded burden on working Americans.
If done correctly, this can be achieved without raising taxes on the middle class. If this is not done correctly we should just call this the Insurance Company Profitability and Protection Act.
* Fred Rumsey is the political committee chairman for the Hanford Atomic Metal Trades Council.
Editorials are the consensus of the Tri-City Herald editorial board.
Editorial board members are Rufus Friday, publisher; Chris Sivula, editorial page editor; Ken Robertson, executive editor; Matt Taylor, contributing editor; Lori Lancaster, editorial writer; Shelly Norman, editorial writer and Jack Briggs, retired publisher
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