Health Care

I attended a meeting about Single Payer Health Care at UVM last night. All who spoke and I believe most in attendance including a large contingent from the tiny Vermont Socialist Party were in favor of this plan. House bill 100 and Senate bill 88 are the items that need to be pushed through to achieve this goal. Like the Vermont Yankee forum last week there was tremendous optimism and delusion about the federal government allowing little old Vermont to do what we want. Peter Shumlin and other candidates for office were present. The main sticking point in the minds of the panel of experts was the money. Not the money Vermont would be taking from the insurance companies by excluding them but the cost to the citizens of Vermont Dr. Andy Coates explained quite clearly how a less complicated system would save money by reducing costs and taxes at the same time. He also called Health Insurance companies a 780 billion dollar tumor.
This is all common sense and as the panel pointed out there is much evidence that supports this system that Thomas Douglas started in Saskatchewan 50 years ago. Funding it would also be easy and the common sense approach works best. Don’t increase income tax to pay for sick people. Increase taxes on the things that make them sick. 75% of hospital visits, which are the most expensive part of health care relate to the effects of alcohol, tobacco, and obesity. We know that the cigarette tax has reduced consumption, making a healthier less health care dependent population. Success!!! We need to repeat this with alcohol and the number 1# cause of obesity and dental work. Sugar. Maybe just tax soda since it would be easy. All of these are easily taxed and could pay all health care costs in Vermont. If people buy less of these products Vermont get healthier and costs go down. Success!!! Unfortunately common sense rarely wins in Washington when confronting big money interests.