Americans Deserve Real Health Care Reform By U.S. Senator Russ Feingold May 11, 2006 When people stand up to speak at one of my listening sessions in Wisconsin, there is a good chance they want to talk about health care reform. That’s because, year after year, this is one of the top issues raised at the townhall meetings I hold in each of my state’s 72 counties. And Wisconsinites aren’t coming to praise the current system. They come to express their frustration, and to tell heart wrenching stories about a system that has failed them, or their family, or someone they love. Last week, to help raise awareness about the more than 45 million uninsured – including the 8 million children – and countless others who are underinsured, Americans took part in Cover the Uninsured Week. Despite such efforts to promote the facts and failures in the health care system that have affected so many American families, Congress has been in a political stalemate on health care reform for decades. Our inability to come to an agreement on this issue leaves hard-working American families in a continual struggle to provide themselves and their family members with medical care. I recently had a woman call my office who works for a small business that does not offer health insurance. She could not find individual coverage due to a preexisting condition. So when a medical emergency forced her to spend eight days in the hospital, she had to pay the cost herself. She now needs major surgery, but doesn’t know how she will pay for it on her income. Like many working Americans, she doesn’t have health insurance and because of her medical conditions, she can’t find or afford insurance in the individual market. Recent numbers released by the Commonwealth Foundation last week reported that 41 percent of moderate to low-income workers did not have insurance at some point during 2005. This is up from 28 percent in 2002. The skyrocketing costs of health care are hurting workers, businesses, and families, and frustrating the medical community. It’s time to do something about it. When it comes to health care reform, Congress doesn’t seem to know where to start, but the American people do – the way to start is by agreeing to finally debate this issue. Once we’ve made that commitment, we can begin making the tough decisions, hammering out the details and, at long last, getting something done. We need to break the political gridlock in Congress. In order to help advance this discussion, I joined Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina last year in introducing a bill that would force Congress to take up the issue of health care reform. The bill does not prejudge which particular health care reform measures should be debated – it simply requires Congress to act, and consider legislation ensuring coverage for at least 95 percent of Americans. This bill will help ensure that discussion of this issue is not moved to the back burner. Recently, Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney signed a bill into law trying to bring universal health care coverage to his state. That bill may not be perfect, but I applaud Massachusetts lawmakers and Governor Romney for their efforts. Other states are also considering innovative ideas, which is why I support an approach to health care reform that will build on the great strides being made in the states. We should be encouraging more states to take creative and innovative approaches to providing universal health care, so that some of these good ideas can become viable initiatives. I favor an approach that allows states the flexibility to address the problem of uninsurance in their own way, provided they meet certain requirements set by the federal government. This collaborative approach would help to insure everyone and lower the actual cost of health care. With initiatives from the federal government, states would have the freedom to choose from a variety of options in order to provide coverage for everyone in their state, and these ideas could come from across the political spectrum. Ideas could include tax credits for businesses and individuals, expansion of federal programs, or a program modeling the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. We need to solve the health care problems facing our country. Our current system is unsustainable, and I believe that this innovative and collaborative approach could appeal to state and federal governments. Above all, we need to jumpstart this debate, and change a failed health care system that is letting down so many Americans.