Commentary
Health Care Reform: We Need the Public Option
By John M. Williams
It is no secret that I am a strong supporter of a public
option when it comes to health care reform. I still support a public option,
even though health care reform is law, because the system still needs it to
keep the insurance companies honest, to keep medical costs down and to provide
better coverage. 
Since President Barack Obama signed the bill, people I
know who buy their own health insurance tell me their premiums have risen from
9 to 19%. They believe premiums will rise for three or four years -- something
a public option would have prevented.
One irate citizen, Jennifer Macon, said, "A public-option
health insurance program would have prevented the increase because my insurance
company would have been scared to lose me."
She is correct.
A health insurance salesman, on the condition of
anonymity, told me, "My company opposed a public-option insurance program
because we believed it was a dire threat to our profits." His company's profits
in 2009 were $58 million, a 16% increase over 2008
His company raised its premiums a minimum of 12% since the
president signed the bill into law. He believes his company's premiums would
not have been raised if the bill called for establishing a public-option health
program.
A representative from Aetna insurance told me, "My company
opposed a public option because we did not know if we could provide the same
services at the same prices."
The message: We want a monopoly.
Monopolies are supposed to be against the law.
Since the health reform bill was signed into law, scores
of angry people have written me to complain about its lack of a public option.
Some blame "a gutless president." Others condemn "a spineless and corrupt
Congress." Many decried "the economic power of big business." A few people
attacked the president, Congress and insurance companies in a single e-mail in
language that is unprintable. The overwhelming majority of the e-mail writers
were people with disabilities who lacked health insurance.
It is obvious that the will of the people was ignored by
not establishing a public option. Ignoring their preference was wrong.
Democracy was ill-served. I believe history will prove me right in making that
assertion. I believe that eventually a public-option program will become law
before this decade ends. Common sense, an aroused public and economics will
dictate its birth. Until then, the pressure to create a public-option program
must be kept up. A public-option health care program will benefit the people
and the country. What American can oppose strengthening the country?
John Williams can be reached at
jwilliams@atechnews.com. His Web
site is www.atechnews.com.
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