Krugman: If Obama gets us to health care universality, his legacy will be secure

[johan helge]

Krugman (http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/25/happier-news/):

Since the last two (blog) posts were very down on the administration, let me say that the initial leaks on health care are encouraging. The supposed commitment of $634 billion to health care reform isn’t quite enough to pay for the subsidies that are an essential part of a universal-care system, but it’s not ridiculously short, either. It’s beginning to look as if Obama’s really going to go through with this — and if he gets us to universality, his legacy will be secure.

[Kdillard]

1. Yes it will be and people will be the better for it too.

Although it appears he is going to need our help because the lobbyists are already lining up to stop him.

[Orsino]

2. If he even gets us significantly closer, he'll be doing well.

A Congress who'll work for us long enough to make it happen will also deserve thanks.

[W_HAMILTON]

3. Can someone explain what he is doing?

I figured universal healthcare would just prove to be an empty promise, but he is still talking about providing more accessible healthcare, and as I read in another thread, he is planning to commit a large portion of the budget to healthcare.

But what does it all mean?

Has he laid out his terms yet? Does it mean that anyone will be able to sign up for Medicare if they want/need? I assume that we are not going to legitimately have true "universal" healthcare, so what are we going to get?

[lunatica]

5. Yeah, I'm very curious too. Will our taxes pay medical for everyone in the US?

And I mean every single person regardless of economic strata or having a job or not (which includes children and the elderly as well as the mentally ill or the handicapped who can't work). Will we have a minimal payment when we visit the doctor? Like $10 for a doctor's visit and $5 for prescriptions. That's what I'd like to see my tax dollars do. It's much more productive than taxes going to the military as far as I'm concerned.

[annabanana]

4. You think you've seen some deification already?

Just wait!

(and I'll be in the front row)

[avaistheone1]

6. If Obama can accomplish this he will have accomplished what

progressives in government and supporters have not been able to do in 60 plus years - give this country universal health care.

This indeed would be a most positive legacy that no other president will have succeed in establishing. It would be truly amazing and absolutely inspiring.

[Jennicut]

7. Obama's plans are ambitious but better to be that way and get SOME of it

accomplished then to be cautious and get very little done.

[avaistheone1]

8. I agree. Obama should go full speed ahead on the health care issue.

The republicans are going to skewer him no matter how small a program he offers. Obama may as well go full tilt, get the job done and make a real difference in meeting American's vital health care needs. That is the change I signed up for.

:kick:

[PassingFair]

9. Voted the "The Greates Canadian of All Time" in 2004...

Tommy Douglas brought health care for ALL to Canada,
and he is BELOVED for it. (I love him too, and I'm
not even Canadian!). Obama will be similarly revered
if he can pull it off.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Douglas

He was voted "The Greatest Canadian" of all time in a nationally televised contest organized by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 2004. His candidacy was advocated by CBC's George Stroumboulopoulos.


Early life and activism

Tommy Douglas was born in Falkirk, Scotland in 1904. In 1910, his family immigrated to Canada, where they settled in Winnipeg. At the age of ten<2>, Douglas injured his leg and developed osteomyelitis. The leg would have been amputated had it not been for a doctor who saw the condition as a good subject to teach his students and agreed to help for free. This rooted Douglas' belief that health care should be free to all, as he thought people shouldn't be dependent on generosity in order to get their health in good order. During World War I, the family returned to Glasgow. They came back to Winnipeg in 1919, in time for Douglas to witness the Winnipeg General Strike. From a rooftop vantage point on Main Street, he witnessed the police charging the strikers with clubs and guns, a streetcar being overturned and set on fire. He also witnessed the RCMP murder two men.<3>


In an interesting aside, he was Donald Sutherland's father-in-law,
making him Kiefer Sutherland's grandfather.