The debate over this bill fully exposed the disastrous situation of health care in our country.

[olegramps]

No longer will the plight of those who are unable to obtain necessary health care be ignored. The status quo that the Republicans sought to maintain has been broken. This bill, despite its shortcomings, will serve to magnify the problems leading to necessary improvements. This is its most important achievement since it will eventually lead to universal health care for every citizen.

Certainly, many who hoped for a more comprehensive bill will not be satisfied, however, I would encourage them to review how Social Security with it many shortcomings was subsequently rectified. There will be no turning back and I am confident that it will be judged as a singular important accomplishment that prevailed in spite of the massive propaganda campaign that was launched by the insurance companies and their Republican booklickers.

[dkf]

1. Magnifying the future problems will only expose how overpromised this pos was

It will not promote faith in the words of Democrats.

And to say the main accomplishment of this bill is to shine a light on the problem is depressing. Woulda coulda shoulda done something better.

[olegramps]

4. Time will tell if my analysis is correct. The issue will no longer be ignored.

The Revelation of the sheer magnitude of the problem was something the Health Care Insurance industry feared most. Their horrible practices were fully exposed and they will be hammered repeatedly. I don't in the least share your pessimism, gloom and doom. I will fully admit that I didn't comprehend the magnitude of the situation and I don't believe that most of my fellow citizens had any better grasp of the situation either. This is not the end of the discussion, only the beginning.

[dkf]

8. Seeing sicko turned me into a believer in single payer.

Did you see it? I don't see fixes for too many of those situations.

[jtrockville]

9. Most enlightening thing about Sicko for me: they all had insurance.

I always knew it, but after Sicko it was cemented in my mind:
Insurance is THE PROBLEM, not the solution.

[dkf]

10. Yes they all had insurance and they had the rug pulled from under them.

Insurance doesn't give you piece of mind or any guarantees the way it's supposed to. It's a scam to provide large bonuses to shysters and crooks.

[jtrockville]

11. Just like Obama's mother.

On the campaign trail, Obama often spoke of overhearing his mother fighting with insurance companies on her death bed. I'm not sure anything in this bill addresses Obama's mother's situation. I hope I'm wrong, but from what I can tell, insurance companies are still free to intervene between you and your doctor by dictating what they'll pay for. And even if your doctor orders an "insurance company sanctioned" procedure, it doesn't mean you can affort the deductible/copay.

We still have lots of work to do to get this right.

[dkf]

12. He didn't seem to fix the parts that gave her the most grief.

Instead he made sure we'd all be fighting With insurance companies on our death beds. Funny that

[Oregone]

2. "eventually lead to universal health care for every citizen"

What kind of universal health care?

The private kind with point of service fees acting as a gatekeeper to care and per capita health costs twice that of other industrialized nations?

Those words are feel goody buzz words that are slowly losing meaning these days especially. No one ever wants to draw lines in the sand and take a stand for something, but rather repeat something to make them feel gushy inside.

Im not attacking you, but the entire notion of the ambiguity around the health care debate.

[eridani]

3. The point of the bill was to ignore and degrade actual CARE, in favor of mandated insurance

As I recall, SS did NOT start as a mandate to open a retirement account with Wall Street.

[nannah]

7. well said n/t

[MarjorieG]

5. No way the mood and misinformation would allow a better bill, Medicare buy-in, strong public option.

I think Obama tweeked the best he could, and we will move towards a national exchange, and single-payer in some states. Other countries have public-private partnerships in health care, and it is the way of future economies here and in other countries, as well.

Telling that the more complete gov't run systems were enacted post WWII, or longer ago.

[joe black]

13. Bullshit

Obama made sure there was no such thing as a public option or medicare buy in, he never wanted it and never fought for it. I'm done with this guy and yes, I voted for him and gave money to his campaign. I'm 60 yo and voted Dem. all my life. I'll be working for someone else come 2012 if he keeps this repukelican-lite shit up.

[MarjorieG]

14. He really thought he could get PO in the beginning, but what we got was all that was possible.

If you want to blame him entirely, swear, it's your right, but I think misplaced.

[nannah]

6. i thought this debacle

fully revealed how bankrupt and corrupt our system of government truly is. what a big charade this was. if people feel there is any credibility left in this process, show me where. this was a hugely expensive process to avoid passing the legislation that the majority of americans want;; expanded medicare for all. it was tricky to give the insurance industry most of what they wanted while denying americans the health CARE they need and for which we can pay by diverting health INSURANCE dollars into MEDICARE for all. wholly corrupt except for a few shining stars like Kucinich and Grayson.