One of the keys to reforming healthcare is to detach and decouple health coverage and employment

[burythehatchet]

It may have made sense at one time, though the logic to me was tenuous, at best. But now having employers provide your health coverage is a horrible situation. It gives the corporation more control over you than you might realize.

[TBF]

1. It's time for universal single-payer health care -

the insurance companies can still provide supplemental plans and all that ... but we need a basic level of health care for all. I would think business would be on-board. Less cost and effort for them, and makes them more competitive against businesses in countries that have already done this. It's time to do this, and this is the administration to do it.

[kentuck]

2. I agree...

I personally know folks that are slaves to their present jobs simply for the health coverage. And the corporations know they have these employees, no matter what. They use health insurance as leverage against all employees to keep wages down and complaints to a minimum. It should be de-coupled.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

3. It's could be one result of the unemployment situation

That as more people lose coverage due to job loss and find that they can't afford COBRA, which is the case 9 times out of 10, we will get critical mass on health care. Actually, we ALREADY have critical mass on healthcare.

Single payer, universal healthcare, NOW!

[Coyote_Bandit]

4. Ever ask an employer

to give you a raise (or worse yet the amount of money expended for your health coverage) in lieu of providing health care?

Many years ago I had an individual policy that was guaranteed renewable for life. I wanted to keep it. My employer would not give me even a portion of my health care premium in any form (wage, bonus, etc) to enable me to do so. I lost that coverage and took the employer plan.

Another time at another job the employees were informed mid-day that effective as of midnight that night their helath coverage would be terminated. Because of that, everybody ended up with pre-existing conditions and some were unable to secure helath coverage.

[Captain Hilts]

5. YES! Helps labor mobility and makes it possible for someone like I am to get insurance,

which I can't now despite passing a physical and having a good health record.

Being unemployed puts me in a risk pool that insurance companies will not ensure.

[The2ndWheel]

6. We not just couple everything?

Why don't we just go with a monopoly where business and government are the same thing? How much energy is wasted in having those two entities constantly fight against each other? The most efficient number is one. We all want a universal, single payer health system. Why not just have a universal, single employer system?

[zipplewrath]

7. I suspect you could get significant corporate support

This is a big expense for the largest corporations in the country. I thought for some time that the "bail out" for GM and the rest of the auto industry could have been merely to take over their healthcare costs. Form some government run/administered healthcare plan (maybe the same outfit that runs congress') and relieve them of their retiree burdens. After getting it up and running, it could have been expanded to other "struggling" industries, and ultimately to any business'/employees that get interested.