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Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Remove Profiteering and Support a Public Option in Healthcare Reform

The Public Option is an absolute necessity to any truly effective healthcare overhaul.  Here’s why.
Throughout history, profit has been made providing essential services at the public’s expense until the fleecing became so apparent that a response is absolutely warranted. 
When public infrastructure and community assets, including roads, community utilities, storm drains and parks, needed to be constructed or repaired, contractors were paid more than the minimum capital requirement to finance the work, materials and equipment in the name of supporting businesses entitlement to profit.  Eventually, the public agencies responded by providing the same services with their own forces. Contracting for construction services is still a giant part of our domestic economy.
When public safety services, including law enforcement, fire fighting, border protection, and security support (military), became too expensive to afford, public servants were utilized and paid salary instead of “per occurrence” fees.  Private security and fire protection products and services have only increased in recent decades. 
The same is true for education, a mix of public and private institutions providing a critical service whose recipients’ wealth-levels vary widely.
The people hired to work for the public good have never been paid more than their private enterprise counterparts.  Instead, the incentive to lure them into employment was based upon security - a steady, reasonable income without boosts from profit nor dips from declines and a retirement benefit. Basically, fewer rewards are earned for fewer risks taken.  As well, private enterprise and the public sector have always shared human resources.  The private sector can acquire the talent it needs when opportunity becomes available and often at the public expense, since experience and training are provided by the public sector.
Currently, the healthcare system is served almost exclusively by for-profit institutions.  The public sector must provide this service or no restraints will be in-place to control the greed of private health care providers.

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