National Health Insurance

AS THE United States wrestles with the problems of its own health care system, it is tempting to look to programs of socialized medicine in Europe and Canada for solutions. This would be a mistake, however, since experience has shown that it is impossible to control health care costs through national health insurance without any loss of health care benefits.A very cruel aspect of socialized medicine is the degree to which health care services must be rationed. Faced with a vast overload of patients, hospitals simply place people on long waiting lists.

President Barack Obama's approach to so-called "climate change" appears to include recycling old ideas. In his State of the Union address, the president recycled the idea of spending more on education, though we are still getting unsatisfactory results -- a fact he inadvertently acknowledged by saying we're not keeping up with other countries in science and math. He maintained there are tens of thousands of jobs available, but companies can't fill them because public schools aren't teaching students what they need to know.

Louisiana is so un-American, they don't even hold their election on Election Day.Wofford carried Pennsylvania for national health insurance. Now all he has to do is deliver national health insurance.Whoever thought we'd live to say, 'Save the Soviet Union!'?The industry is trying to figure out how many papers went down with Robert Maxwell.

SINGAPORE -- While the U.S. unemployment rate "dropped" to 7.7 percent last month -- a figure even The Washington Post acknowledged was due "in large part because the labor force fell by 350,000" -- here in this modern and prosperous city-state of slightly more than 5 million people, unemployment is practically nonexistent. A taxi driver tells me, "Everyone here works. " With unemployment at an astonishingly low 1.9 percent, he is nearly right. In part, this is due to a work ethic that seems to be in the genes here.

The good news is that Queen Elizabeth II will watch th Baltimore Orioles at play. The bad news is that George Bush is assigned to explain the game to her.This is late in the game but the American Medical Association, which fought national health insurance to death, just caught on that it would mean more doctor work at good pay.

Michael Moore's film Sicko gave a big boost to the movement for single-payer national health insurance this year. But even those turned off by Mr. Moore's less-than-subtle style will find many reasons to support a single-payer system. As the number of uninsured and underinsured Americans continues to rise and medical costs spiral out of control, these reasons are increasingly compelling. As doctors at an urban hospital, we see uninsured patients in the emergency room with serious illnesses that easily could have been prevented with appropriate preventive care.

Washington. -- For decades, the American Medical Association's role in public policy paralleled that of the National Rifle Association. As the NRA represents the special interest of the firearms industry, the AMA represents the special interest of doctors. As the NRA called any step toward gun control a violation of the Bill of Rights, the AMA said any step toward national health insurance was ''socialized medicine.''But now that the Berlin wall has fallen and the 1990s are well under way, the AMA has decided to catch up with the century -- to advocate that the United States join the rest of the civilized, industrialized world and make sure that all its citizens have access to decent medical care.

ABOUT 42 million Americans - 600,000 in Maryland - have no health insurance, either because they have no jobs or jobs with no health benefits, they can't afford it, or they don't think they need it. Nationally, the number is increasing by about 1 million annually. Citizens can bring these figures to zero by voting into office leaders who will enact national health insurance. We know that our health insurance is only as good as our economy and job. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recently reported that sometime during 2001 and 2002, 30 percent of 74.7 million Americans under 65 were uninsured.

Here are excerpts from some of the campaign commercials used by victorious candidates in Tuesday's election:HARRIS WOFFORD, Democrat for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania (standing in a physician's office):This is a doctor's office. But when members of Congress get sick, they don't have to come here.They can go to the Capitol physician free of charge. They can get free physicals, blood tests, lab work, even free prescription drugs. . . . It's time for national health insurance -- for people, and not just politicians.

Health care insurance reform may be an idea whose time has come, but it is not a new idea. Nor is it an American idea. National health insurance has existed in Europe since the late 1880s, when it was put in place in response to pressure from an activist labor movement. Germany was the first country to have a national health insurance plan, and the other European countries followed.As this country moves forward in the examination of our latest health insurance reform proposal, it is helpful to look at the history of this effort in the United States.

I can empathize withRobert L. Ehrlich Jr.in his hope that the Supreme Court will strike down Obamacare in its entirety ("Obamacare and birth control: Women's health isn't the issue," April 8). The Affordable Care Act that became law bears little resemblance to the bill that was introduced, only to be slashed, ripped, compromised and otherwise reduced to a few good points. And now those few good points are being nibbled at afresh. It's pathetic that the Administration had to declare some form of victory in what emerged as the ACA because, although it brings medical care to certain ranks of the uninsured, I can see no great savings at the governmental or personal level.

We need a public option The issue of national health insurance reform can be accurately explained in complex detail or simply and conceptually. Either way, economists, experts, business leaders, the AARP and most doctors, nurses, hospitals and American citizens agree - reform legislation must be signed into law this year or the economic consequences will be dire for our country, for businesses and for American families. Additionally, real improvements in quality health care, such as prevention, will only come if there's reform.

Nearly a century has passed since initial discussions began in the United States about the need for national health insurance - and we're still talking about it. Now, President Barack Obama and House leaders have committed to a July 31 deadline for moving a health reform bill through the House. This bill focuses on three core principles: reducing rising health care costs, allowing Americans the ability to choose their own doctors and their own plans, and ensuring quality, affordable health care for all Americans.

Michael Moore's film Sicko gave a big boost to the movement for single-payer national health insurance this year. But even those turned off by Mr. Moore's less-than-subtle style will find many reasons to support a single-payer system. As the number of uninsured and underinsured Americans continues to rise and medical costs spiral out of control, these reasons are increasingly compelling. As doctors at an urban hospital, we see uninsured patients in the emergency room with serious illnesses that easily could have been prevented with appropriate preventive care.

Make medical care available for all I agree with Thomas Sowell that people should take responsibility for how they use health care dollars and insurance and for how they care for themselves and use medical facilities, including ERs ("Let's not confuse lack of insurance with lack of care," Opinion * Commentary, Sept. 5). I also see his point that national health insurance would not be free. However, Mr. Sowell notes that in the past he was "lucky enough not to have any heavy duty medical expenses that would have required major operations or a long-term hospital stay."

LOS ANGELES - California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi, satisfied by millions of dollars in concessions to the state, cleared the way yesterday for health care giants Anthem Inc. and WellPoint Health Networks Inc. to complete their multibillion-dollar merger. Anthem announced plans in October last year to acquire WellPoint in a deal valued at $16.4 billion, but Garamendi's refusal in July to approve the transfer of its Blue Cross Life & Health subsidiary, which has 7 million members in California, stalled the process.

I can empathize withRobert L. Ehrlich Jr.in his hope that the Supreme Court will strike down Obamacare in its entirety ("Obamacare and birth control: Women's health isn't the issue," April 8). The Affordable Care Act that became law bears little resemblance to the bill that was introduced, only to be slashed, ripped, compromised and otherwise reduced to a few good points. And now those few good points are being nibbled at afresh. It's pathetic that the Administration had to declare some form of victory in what emerged as the ACA because, although it brings medical care to certain ranks of the uninsured, I can see no great savings at the governmental or personal level.

Sag Harbor, New York -- The worst moment of parenting for me -- and I assume for many American fathers and mothers -- was trying to explain to sons and daughters that they were on their own when it came to health insurance and health costs.They had to take care of themselves when our health plans cut them off after college. They were, if they did not have their own health insurance, we told them, just one accident or illness away from welfare, because any open-ended medical problems could take everything their parents had earned over a lifetime -- a house and some savings, not all that much.

ABOUT 42 million Americans - 600,000 in Maryland - have no health insurance, either because they have no jobs or jobs with no health benefits, they can't afford it, or they don't think they need it. Nationally, the number is increasing by about 1 million annually. Citizens can bring these figures to zero by voting into office leaders who will enact national health insurance. We know that our health insurance is only as good as our economy and job. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recently reported that sometime during 2001 and 2002, 30 percent of 74.7 million Americans under 65 were uninsured.

Dr. Frank Folke Furstenberg, a retired allergist and Sinai Hospital official and founder of Pets on Wheels Inc., died of Parkinson's disease Tuesday at his Guilford residence. He was 92.Dr. Furstenberg went to work for Sinai Hospital in 1946 as director of the medical care clinic, which served public assistance clients, and retired in 1984 after holding positions including director of the outpatient department and associate director for program development.He also closed his private practice in 1984.