Editor's corner/ Over a cup of tea
Heidi M. Pascual*
Publisher & Editor
* 2006 Journalist of the
Year for the State of
Wisconsin (U.S.-SBA)
Publisher & Editor
* 2006 Journalist of the
Year for the State of
Wisconsin (U.S.-SBA)
| Dr. Linda Farley |
It broke my heart when I heard that Dr. Linda Farley passed away. She probably didn’t even know me;
but she has been my idol since I became involved in community issues in Madison. Whenever health care
reform is discussed, Dr. Linda Farley and her better half, Dr. Eugene Farley, have always been in the
forefront, speaking on behalf of millions of Americans who couldn’t afford health insurance.
With her gone, we lost one of the strongest advocates of a just health care system. Let us be inspired to
gather our voices and echo what Linda had worked very hard for.
For our readers who didn’t get the chance to read the Farleys’ column in the April 16 issue of The
Capital City Hues, our sister publication, below is a reprint of their stand on health care reform.
Drs. Linda & Eugene Farley
“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.”-Martin Luther
King Jr.
Reform of health care has been an issue in the U.S. for over 100 years with Presidents Teddy
Roosevelt, FDR, Truman, Johnson, Nixon, Clinton, and now President Obama all introducing proposals.
Only Lyndon Johnson succeeded so far. Because the elderly and the poor, more subject to illness, cost too
but she has been my idol since I became involved in community issues in Madison. Whenever health care
reform is discussed, Dr. Linda Farley and her better half, Dr. Eugene Farley, have always been in the
forefront, speaking on behalf of millions of Americans who couldn’t afford health insurance.
With her gone, we lost one of the strongest advocates of a just health care system. Let us be inspired to
gather our voices and echo what Linda had worked very hard for.
For our readers who didn’t get the chance to read the Farleys’ column in the April 16 issue of The
Capital City Hues, our sister publication, below is a reprint of their stand on health care reform.
Drs. Linda & Eugene Farley
“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.”-Martin Luther
King Jr.
Reform of health care has been an issue in the U.S. for over 100 years with Presidents Teddy
Roosevelt, FDR, Truman, Johnson, Nixon, Clinton, and now President Obama all introducing proposals.
Only Lyndon Johnson succeeded so far. Because the elderly and the poor, more subject to illness, cost too
much for the insurance companies to take on as risks, and because the people demanded help, Johnson was able to push through reforms
known as Medicare, an entitlement federally funded, for the elderly and people with disabilities, and Medicaid, a state-federal publicly funded
program for the very poor. Both of these programs, as well as health care for Veterans, the Military, and Native Americans, are paid for with
tax-payer money and are popular examples of what is called Single Payer Health Care. ...
The time is ripe for the people to push their legislators toward Single Payer as the only really practical solution and thus persuade
President Obama that his analysis is correct and can be politically possible.
As to what needs to be reformed, the following is a partial list:
1.Cost: currently the cost of health care in the U.S. is $2.5 trillion; $8,000 per capita and over $12,000 per family. This is twice the cost of
health care in every other industrialized country in the world but still leaves us with at least 100 million people uninsured or underinsured,
and costs more because of inadequate access to care.
Private, for-profit insurance companies and HMOs market to the healthy, deny care to the sick, and consider as their bottom line, profits for
their shareholders, who contribute nothing to the care of the sick.
Fragmentation [is happening] with over 1500 insurance companies each offering many plans, requiring a huge bureaucracy to manage the
paperwork.
Pharmaceutical companies, always looking for higher profits, control the cost of drugs lobbying for subsidies even for Medicare patients
as in Part D.
Overhead in the U.S. amounts to 31% of total costs compared to an average of 16% in other countries. Think what a savings of 16% of
$2.5 trillion would do toward providing health care for everyone including preventive care and education about healthy life styles. No longer
would 50% of bankruptcies involve health care debt.
2. Burden for business results from our reliance on employers to shop for and buy health insurance for all employees. This favors large
business because small businesses cannot compete and often cannot offer health care. Today, even big business cannot compete in the
global market and must put more of the burden on its employees or offer inferior coverage.
3. Chronic illness such as hypertension, heart disease, and cancer, cost us more because our health care system does not offer continuity
and because many people with chronic illness cannot afford health insurance and thus only seek care when illness becomes very severe
and costly.
4. Primary care/Specialist ratio does not meet the needs of good health care for the people. It is about 30 primary care providers/70
specialists and sub-specialists in this country with a desirable ratio of 50/50.
5. Disparities in health care such as high infant mortality and earlier deaths, among minority and/or poor people.
6. Inequality means money determines who gets the benefits of good health care.
As to the key features of a reformed health care system, the U.S. would: Save at least $400 billion dollars by passing a Single Payer
National Health Program with only one funding source as in Medicare with 3% overhead; Eliminate all for-profit insurance companies, HMOs,
and other for-profit institutions such as hospitals, nursing homes, home-care companies; Require that these institutions operate on a not-for-
profit basis and be subject to regional planning, and distributed according to population need; Provide only one equitable plan available to
all. There would be regulation of pharmaceutical company profits and bargaining on behalf of the entire population. Employers would no longer
be involved in shopping for health care for their employees.
Such a program would provide continuity of care and increase frequency of visits with emphasis on prevention and health maintenance
through careful follow-up. There would be no co-pays or deductibles.
It would encourage medical students to choose primary care pathways by offering greater incentives such as better pay; select students
who desire primary care; cut costs of medical education; and expose students to the challenges of primary care.
In summary, we need a Single Payer Health Care Program because: 1) It’s good for our health; 2) It costs less and saves money; 3) It will
assure high quality health care for all Americans, rich or poor; 4) It’s the best choice – morally and economically; 5) It may be a matter of life or
death; 6) It will let doctors and nurses focus on patients, not paperwork; 7) It will reduce health care disparities; 8) It will eliminate medical
debt; 9) It will be good for labor and for business; and 10) It’s what most Americans want – and we can make it happen!
known as Medicare, an entitlement federally funded, for the elderly and people with disabilities, and Medicaid, a state-federal publicly funded
program for the very poor. Both of these programs, as well as health care for Veterans, the Military, and Native Americans, are paid for with
tax-payer money and are popular examples of what is called Single Payer Health Care. ...
The time is ripe for the people to push their legislators toward Single Payer as the only really practical solution and thus persuade
President Obama that his analysis is correct and can be politically possible.
As to what needs to be reformed, the following is a partial list:
1.Cost: currently the cost of health care in the U.S. is $2.5 trillion; $8,000 per capita and over $12,000 per family. This is twice the cost of
health care in every other industrialized country in the world but still leaves us with at least 100 million people uninsured or underinsured,
and costs more because of inadequate access to care.
Private, for-profit insurance companies and HMOs market to the healthy, deny care to the sick, and consider as their bottom line, profits for
their shareholders, who contribute nothing to the care of the sick.
Fragmentation [is happening] with over 1500 insurance companies each offering many plans, requiring a huge bureaucracy to manage the
paperwork.
Pharmaceutical companies, always looking for higher profits, control the cost of drugs lobbying for subsidies even for Medicare patients
as in Part D.
Overhead in the U.S. amounts to 31% of total costs compared to an average of 16% in other countries. Think what a savings of 16% of
$2.5 trillion would do toward providing health care for everyone including preventive care and education about healthy life styles. No longer
would 50% of bankruptcies involve health care debt.
2. Burden for business results from our reliance on employers to shop for and buy health insurance for all employees. This favors large
business because small businesses cannot compete and often cannot offer health care. Today, even big business cannot compete in the
global market and must put more of the burden on its employees or offer inferior coverage.
3. Chronic illness such as hypertension, heart disease, and cancer, cost us more because our health care system does not offer continuity
and because many people with chronic illness cannot afford health insurance and thus only seek care when illness becomes very severe
and costly.
4. Primary care/Specialist ratio does not meet the needs of good health care for the people. It is about 30 primary care providers/70
specialists and sub-specialists in this country with a desirable ratio of 50/50.
5. Disparities in health care such as high infant mortality and earlier deaths, among minority and/or poor people.
6. Inequality means money determines who gets the benefits of good health care.
As to the key features of a reformed health care system, the U.S. would: Save at least $400 billion dollars by passing a Single Payer
National Health Program with only one funding source as in Medicare with 3% overhead; Eliminate all for-profit insurance companies, HMOs,
and other for-profit institutions such as hospitals, nursing homes, home-care companies; Require that these institutions operate on a not-for-
profit basis and be subject to regional planning, and distributed according to population need; Provide only one equitable plan available to
all. There would be regulation of pharmaceutical company profits and bargaining on behalf of the entire population. Employers would no longer
be involved in shopping for health care for their employees.
Such a program would provide continuity of care and increase frequency of visits with emphasis on prevention and health maintenance
through careful follow-up. There would be no co-pays or deductibles.
It would encourage medical students to choose primary care pathways by offering greater incentives such as better pay; select students
who desire primary care; cut costs of medical education; and expose students to the challenges of primary care.
In summary, we need a Single Payer Health Care Program because: 1) It’s good for our health; 2) It costs less and saves money; 3) It will
assure high quality health care for all Americans, rich or poor; 4) It’s the best choice – morally and economically; 5) It may be a matter of life or
death; 6) It will let doctors and nurses focus on patients, not paperwork; 7) It will reduce health care disparities; 8) It will eliminate medical
debt; 9) It will be good for labor and for business; and 10) It’s what most Americans want – and we can make it happen!