In an article “Seizing the moment on health-care reform” (“Winning ugly on health care” in the Intell), Eugene Robinson writes:
“When all is said and done — and, yes, there is a bit more saying and doing to endure, which means that anything can happen — the health-care reform legislation that President Obama now seems likely to sign into law, while an unlovely mess, will be remembered as a landmark accomplishment.
“The bill making its way through the Senate by the slimmest of margins is imperfect, to say the least. But before listing its many flaws, let’s consider the measure’s one great virtue: For the first time, we will enshrine the principle that all Americans deserve access to medical care regardless of their ability to pay. No longer will it be the policy and practice of our nation to ration health according to wealth.”…
“This isn’t the end of a process that leads to a rational, sustainable, more efficient health care system. It’s the beginning.”
WATCHDOG: Three wags of the tale. While we have been very critical of the rejection of a Single Payer approach or at least a Public Option, and are concerned about failures to curtail costs, we have swallowed our disappointment and agree with Robinson that this is a milestone and the first step towards truly bringing US care in line with other advanced economic nations.
We have but one quibble. A 60% vote is hardly the “slimmest of margins.” The Democrats, had they chosen to play hardball, could have rammed through far greater reforms with a 51% vote by use of the Reconciliation Process. Anyone who says that the Democrats have not sought a bi-partisan approach either isn’t knowledgeable or doesn’t want to recognize the obvious.
