The New York Times, had a great opinion piece posted today entitled, “Don’t Blame Obama“. I categorize it as ‘great’ partly because this has been the first report I have read from a notable source that actually states, ”If it [health care reform] doesn’t [pass], President Obama will have been defeated. But it’s the party, not the president, that will have failed.” In the past, great, unprecedented, projects have taken more than a metaphorical day to complete. And while I am not comparing Presidents Obama’s proposed health care reform to say, the birth of Rome, or the construction of the pyramids in Egypt, the proposed issue itself has triggered controversy resulting in people looking for decisive action. Ultimately, the United States has a lot of bright ideas for the future, from the construction of high-speed trains, to more environmentally friendly vehicles. Yet, it seems that the United States is facing conflict from within, questioning the integrity of their President’s first major ‘push’ to establish history, although with numerous issues on the table from tackling climate change, to insipiring innovation, priority has become an issue in itself.
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As the President Obama struggles to unite the Republicans to accept his proposed health care reform, many are wondering why this is taking so long. Explanations range from calling the Republicans stubborn, to criticizing for not initiating further dialogue between the two parties. According to an article called, “NBC Poll: Myths Endure on Health Care, Highlighting Doubts on Overhaul” from the Wall Street Journal and cited on The White House Blog article, “Why We Need A Reality Check”,
Nearly half of Americans believe that a proposed overhaul of the health care system means the government will decide when to stop providing medical treatment to senior citizens, according to the latest polling by NBC News released this evening. Some 45% said they believe the plan is likely to include such a provision that has become known as “death panels” despite bipartisan efforts by President Barack Obama and the provision’s author, Republican Georgia Sen. Johnny Isakson to dispel the idea. (Isakson, in a recent interview with the Washington Post called the confusion “nuts.”)
Not only do this rumours include the U.S. government attempting to stop giving medical treatment to the eldery, and ironic rumour since one the main goals of health care reform is to make sure that you cannot be turned down when you need health insurance, but these rumours also include the government and “dealth panels” as mentioned above. To paraphrase a report covered on the CBS program Sunday Morning , “you have a greater chance of being attacked by the fictional death star, than being killed by a government run death panel.”
The future of passing a bipartisan bill, a bill supported by both Democrats and Republicans alike, will be up for grabs on August 20, 2009 when the August Recess Teleconference takes place. For more information see the New York Times article, “The Gang of Six Will Talk at 9″
Links:
http://www.nchc.org/ : The National Coalition on Health Care
http://tiny.cc/rJctI : CBS Sunday Morning’s “What Do We Know About Health Reform”
