The Health-Care Plan of 1993

[misterhighwasted]

https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/the-challenges-of-globalization-and-the-coming-century-after-1989-31/the-clinton-administration-231/the-health-care-plan-of-1993-1317-9290/

snip..The Clinton health care plan was a 1993 healthcare reform package proposed by the administration of President Bill Clinton and closely associated with the chair of the task force devising the plan, First Lady of the United States Hillary Rodham Clinton.

snip..Its goal was to come up with a comprehensive plan to provide universal health care for all Americans, which was to be a cornerstone of the administration's first-term agenda. A major health care speech was delivered by President Clinton to the U.S. Congress in September 1993.

snip..Opposition to the plan was heavy from conservatives, libertarians, and the health insurance industry. The industry produced a highly effective television ad, "Harry and Louise" ad", in an effort to rally public support against the plan. Democrats, instead of uniting behind the President's original proposal, offered a number of competing plans of their own. Hillary Clinton was drafted by the Clinton Administration to head a new Task Force and sell the plan to the American people, a plan which ultimately backfired amid the barrage of fire from the pharmaceutical and health insurance industries and considerably diminished her own popularity. By September 1994, the final compromise Democratic bill was declared dead by Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell.

snip..Opposition to the Clinton plan was initiated by William Kristol and his policy group Project for the Republican Future, which is widely credited with orchestrating the plan's ultimate defeat through a series of now legendary "policy memos" faxed to Republican leaders. Conservatives, libertarians, and the health insurance industry proceeded to campaign against the plan, criticizing it as being overly bureaucratic and restrictive of patient choice. The conservative Heritage Foundation argued "the Clinton Administration is imposing a top-down, command-and-control system of global budget...cont

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Conservatives immediately went after Mrs Clinton in their effort to the STOP Universal Health Care Plan of 1993.
I recall this time, as Mrs Clinton was criticized by the Right Wing as not being First Lady-like, quiet & standing in the shadows tending to family & hosting non controversial women's teas, & promptly organized a campaign of Clinton Policy Haters on the Right & Groups like Big Pharma & Ins industry Players to bring it to an end. Much like they tried with President Obama's ACA.

Bill Clinton campaigned on Universal Health Care & invited his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton to lead the cause.
And like today, the same rabid right wing and powerful lobbies of the profiteers are still campaigning against Obama's ACA & the fear of the power of Hillary Clinton is obvious.
Universal Health Care was necessary & good for America in 1993 and it is today.

Every effort will be made in this 2016 election to stop Hillary Clinton this time, just as they did in 1993.
Best of luck Mrs Clinton.
We know who "they" are and we've seen their game many times before.
Same people, same reasons, same strategy.

[think]

1. Hopefully she'll run on the issue of universal healthcare again. It would be a big plus /nt

[misterhighwasted]

2. If she does, you can be sure that the Rovian Right Wing will shift into overdrive..

They already are. They are still trying to destroy President Obama's ACA, even after millions have been enrolled & using it.
Imagine how they would respond should she re-visit Universal Health Care.

[think]

3. The GOP has been detrimental to the health of Americans. Most Americans probably have no clue

that the rest of the modern word already has universal healthcare.

I never knew until 2008 when Obama started discussing single payer. I started researching universal healthcare while "debating" with Republicans and was completely floored to realize how far behind America was. It was an eye opener.

The ACA is much better than it was but we can and should do better.

JMO..

[misterhighwasted]

7. True. In the Clinton years, we had no Internet like today, to assist the Rovian machine.

This time around they have more at their disposal and they will use it in every way to discredit Hillary Clinton's efforts at 2016.

If you recall the Clinton years as President, you can surely recognize what I am talking about.
Is wasn't just about the Lewinsky blue dres.
It was an organized Right Wing machine that set out to stop the Clintons from day one. And Health Care was just one of the issues.

They treated the Clinton's just as they do the Obamas today, for the same reasons & the exception today is the use of the Internet to divide parties & citizens against the popular vote.

I do know, and wonder if the hate machine was bred out of the fact that the GOP NEVER dreamed that a young Bill Clinton, unkown, would take the election for President away from GHW Bush.

I was living in Denver at the time of the campaign.
GHW Bush visited the city to speak. It was a closed, invite only event. Attendance was around 9000, and it was in typical Bush fashion, safe, organized & scripted to a chosen audience.
Perot also held an event though I don't recall the details of that. Small crowd but energetic, nonetheless.

The day Bill Clinton spoke at the outdoor park in the center of Downtown Denver I took the city bus to listen. He was an unknown.
I arrived early & took my place on the wall of a stone wall with a good view. As I waited, I witness something that told me then & there, that Bill Clinton was destined to be the next President of the USA.

A steady stream of people walking to the Center Park to hear what the newcomber from Hope, Arkansas had to say.
People came to the downtown area, by buses and by car.
In the end the estimates were between 30,000 -50,000.

The GOP believed no one would unseat President GHW Bush and his plans for the next 4 years.
But Bill Clinton did.
He welcomed all citizens under his "tent". Bill Clinton was elected because the people were tired of the Bush & GOP.
Much as they are today.

I believe Bill Clinton interrupted the GOP/Bush political agenda and they vowed to disrupt democracy from that day forward..now fast forward to Bush/Gore & the Bush nominated S Court's decision to select George Jr.

The Supreme Court was crucial to the ability to sway elections as well as policy.

Just as it is crucial in the 2016 election.
Hillary Clinton's popularity brings a threat in many ways to the GOP. Health Care & inclusion of women, lgbt, minority, education & children's issues. All are the very things the GOP loves to hate.

And to up the stakes, consider the possibility of choosing another Supreme Court judge.
Back up now to the Bush handpicked-to-sway-policy Supreme Court that altered an election, among all the other GOP inspired decisions that have come down.
Realize how crucial this 2016 election is to the GOP.

Bill Clinton's sudden rise to popularity interrupted the Bush/GOP drive for absolute control. Something they did not count on ever happening.
Hillary Clinton is the threat today, that the Bush/GOP ignored with Bill Clinton.

[midnight]

4. I'm wondering if this can't be achieved via just opening up medicare/medicaid to all.

It seems much more efficient than keeping others out via income, employment, etc..

[think]

5. It seems very plausible. Bernie Sanders introduced legislation like this not too long ago

Single-Payer, Medicare-for-All Legislation Introduced
Tuesday, May 10, 2011

WASHINGTON, May 10 -- Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) announced today that he introduced legislation to provide health care for every American through a Medicare-for-all type single-payer system.

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) filed a companion bill in the House to provide better care for more patients at less cost by eliminating the middle-man role played by private insurance companies that rake off billions of dollars in profits.

The twin measures, both called the American Health Security Act of 2011, would provide federal guidelines and strong minimum standards for states to administer single-payer health care programs.

"The United States is the only major nation in the industrialized world that does not guarantee health care as a right to its people," Sanders said at a press conference on Capitol Hill. "Meanwhile, we spend about twice as much per capita on health care with worse results than others that spend far less. It is time that we bring about a fundamental transformation of the American health care system. It is time for us to end private, for-profit participation in delivering basic coverage. It is time for the United States to provide a Medicare-for-all single-payer health coverage program." ...


Full press release:
http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/release-single-payer-medicare-for-all-legislation-introduced

[misterhighwasted]

9. An excellent policy, one this country needs.

I like Sanders, absolutely admire him. He is one of the few true statesmen we have left.

[midnight]

11. I don't see why Sanders and Conyers can't work together for health care for all..

[misterhighwasted]

12. Who knows why. I can't even answer your question.

What a mess our government has become.

[midnight]

13. They both have health care bills and want the same thing. I agree- it is a mess...

[yurbud]

6. the primary obstacle is profound corruption in DC across the board

an efficient well-run government program can't make donations to a your next campaign, or offer you a seven figure salary as a CEO, lobbyist, or do-nothing board member when you leave office.

[misterhighwasted]

10. Certainly got that right. Its an absolute cesspool of corruption & influence.

Damn difficult to maneuver through that sewer on your own, in trying to create a better place for this America.

And becoming more difficult to rise up against to change how is operates.

[yurbud]

21. they are so insulated from us that nothing will change until we reach some tipping point

when do rise up in a more or less unified fashion across the political spectrum.

[midnight]

14. Every state in this country needs to pass a law at the voting booth to change finance of campaign

finance not to exceed five dollars a person and if corporations are people, then that corporation can only give five dollars. Each candidate must attend a minimum of 10 debates… and they need to be aired for free….

[misterhighwasted]

15. That's the only way American citizens can make this Government function for them again.

And Scalia should be impeached. But that's a fantasy, I realize.

[midnight]

16. We really should give this some thought. We have folks from all over the country on D.U.

[misterhighwasted]

17. Massive organizing effort and it does need to come from the cities to counties to States & beyond

Daunting but it is the only way to change how things got to this point

[midnight]

18. Well we can mull it around…

[misterhighwasted]

19. Absolutely should put some effort in unifying & spreading the word.

I do agree & appreciate what you are saying.
It is the only way the Dems have ever pushed past the GOP.
From long ago when people organized for labor rights & from that formed the strongest middle class in history.
That worked for everyone.
That was a strong America until the GOP set out to take it all away & reduce us to slave labor for pennies of what we were worth.

The laws need to change & yes DU should be a good place to began that shift back.

What I would like to have in hand is a list of current organizers who are fighting for this same thing.
To join with or simply to reference and to create a stronger movement of ONE rather a lot of separate disconnected groups surviving for the same cause.
To unite them all would be the strength we need to stop the billion dollar GOP move to seal the fate of American citizens forever.

I am not quite that savvy nor have the time to put such a plan together but I am willing to join a like minded DU group and do all I can.

We have till Nov 2016 to keep our Democracy. Organizing is the only way.

[yurbud]

20. yep. Airwaves are public, and cable companies are granted effective monopolies

the price ought to be carrying debates free.

[misterhighwasted]

8. Agree on that point. I wonder how the CLinton health care policy would have eventually looked like..

..had it not been shut down by the GOP & Corps & the Dems who just failed to see the value of the policy.
If it had been allowed to be debated & decided as something good for a wholly functioning society.

I am actually surprised that Obama's ACA is now in play at all. Though in its original for would have been a far better thing for the Nation's citizens. Before it was picked apart by the GOP.

[quadrature]

22. 'health care alliance'..? ... what is that? ...nt

Last edited Thu Mar 5, 2015, 11:45 PM - Edit history (1)