With the election looming around the corner, we should glance over the controversial issue we will inevitably be seeing on the ballots in November - a national health insurance program. Is it a good idea?

Advocates in favor of the nationwide program say it could save approximately $150 billion on paperwork alone. Because of the administrative complexities in our current system, over 25% of every health care dollar goes to marketing, billing, utilization review, and other forms of waste. A single-payer system could reduce administrative costs greatly.

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When many young adults turn 18 years old, they are looking forward to an exciting future that includes college or a new job. But the approximately 500,000 young people who require special medical attention and suffer from diseases like cystic fibrosis, diabetes, congenital heart disease or severe disabilities due to injuries are facing a dilemma that didn’t exist a generation ago. Once they turn 18, they have nowhere to go.

Due to medical advances, many of the children who would not have survived a generation ago are facing a future that is ill-equipped to care for them. While there are facilities that care for and provide services for severely disabled or ill children such as St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children in New York, St. Jude Children’s Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee and Shriner’s Hospitals for Children. Most young people are expelled from these programs when they turn 18, in order to accommodate the influx of younger patients.

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On Tuesday, January 29th, there will be a public hearing on a proposed ballot initiative at the State Capital in Denver.
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Large California Health Insurer, Health Net Inc. is involved in a $6 million lawsuit with accusations of dropping health policies in order to save money, set company goals, and pay bonuses to employees. Patsy Bates, a California hairdresser, is seeking $6 million in damages after her coverage was rescinded by Health Net during her chemotherapy for breast cancer. These accusations bring forward the staggering fact that between 2000 and 2006, Health Net Inc. avoided paying $35.5 million in medical expenses by canceling around 1,600 policies.
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