The Spin

"Mr. Daschle also said that health-care premiums have doubled since 2000, but even with insurance, many people can't get adequate care."-WSJ 8 Jan 2009 5:23PM

"... even with insurance, they can't get adequate care."

What does that mean?

It means Mr. Dashle doesn't think that doctors can think independently about how to deliver care. I means that Congress will decide what adequate means by insisting that doctors fill out more forms to determine "appropriateness" or document their "performance" before they will be paid. He means that he thinks he knows how to control costs through bureaucracy, even though that raises costs to employ all the bean counters out there. He means that he understands that patients can't afford their health care, that businessess can not afford to pay for health care, that insurance companies can no longer afford the high costs that they are incurring, and that the only way to maintain our system is for the government to continue printing money. It means that as long as they continue to print money, that real, meaningful and sustained change to our health care crisis will be put off for another day.

Please Mr. Daschle, cut the hyperbole. It distracts from meaningful discussions about health care reform.

-Wes