President Obama's answer on healthcare.

[ColbertWatcher]

Poll question: President Obama's answer on healthcare.

Today our President conducted the first ever online townhall meeting (White House)

He answered questions on several topics, one of which was healthcare.

Several DUers heard some discrepancies in his answer. (here and here)

My question is: would you accept a raise in your taxes and an overhaul of the system if it meant that everyone's healthcare was covered?

[taught_me_patience]

1. How big of a raise?

Isn't that important to the question?

5% - yes
10% - maybe
15% - no

[ColbertWatcher]

5. Good point.

How about collecting taxes on everyone who owes, including those mailboxes overseas?

If we can do that, then the raise would probably hit 5%.

[taught_me_patience]

9. We could probably do it with 5%

and decrease military spending by 50%. I'd be all for it! Would corporations "refund" the amount that they are paying for healthcare with higher wages? I doubt it...

[DCKit]

2. If, in fact, he did say "we can't afford it", he's been given bad numbers.

NOBODY spends more, per capita on health-care and we've got 15% doing without.

With for-profit insurance companies out of the picture, universal care would suddenly become very affordable - about half what we're currently paying in premiums.

[fascisthunter]

3. What about Re-Allocating Funds from the Military to health care

and repeal the tax cuts for the wealthiest deluded fools on the planet? I think the money is already there...

[leftstreet]

4. *PORN*

Doing my part to keep this thread kicked

:o

YES to Single Payer Healthcare!

[ecstatic]

6. And I'm curious about whether smokers of cigarettes and various

other lung cancer causing substances should get a pass as they jack up the rates for everyone else?

[leftstreet]

8. oooooh, or eaters of Twinkies

:popcorn:

[readmoreoften]

7. Only if it's nationalized or single payer.

I'm not giving money to an unnecessary insurance profit-system, and if it becomes like liability insurance where one is *required* to carry it and pay $100 a month, then it's a backdoor flat tax on the working poor.

[mwooldri]

10. If it is on the principles of the UK NHS then yes yes yes!

Considering the UK's NHS covers 10+ million more people than Medicare does *AND* with less than half of Medicare's budget ($160 billion vs Medicare's $440 billion) *and* doesn't require things like doctors copays, no hospital bills, drug bills are low compared to here (free for seniors, under 16's and low income).

Oh and Big Pharma's in check: NHS buys and sells the vast majority of the drugs, so drug companies can either price it right or not have a buyer. The downside though is that if there is an expensive medicine the NHS does not buy, patients who could benefit from it either have to choose whether to "go private" and buy it themselves, or hope a less effective medicine or treatment does work or in extreme cases, make funeral arrangements. But having at least an effective basic level of healthcare that everyone can access is far better than none at all for 45-50 million people. (don't give me that old crock that everyone could access the emergency room - if things are bad what happens next at best? You get well enough to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy if you're lucky... or at worst someones' making your funeral arrangements).

I'd pay more taxes to have a basic level healthcare system.

[ColbertWatcher]

11. Gotta love those numbers. Thank you for posting. n/t