I am deviating from my plan to write more about the history of healthcare and the U.S. government because of Saturday’s Campaign for Guaranteed Healthcare rallies, and offer this attempt to guide thinking about solving the problem of healthcare. I believe the conclusion follows logically from the statements, but you might reach a different conclusion…
You will probably be surprised to learn that the first U.S. president to propose any form of government-sponsored healthcare was a Republican. OK, technically a former Republican.
Teddy Roosevelt served as our 26th president from 1901 to 1909, after which his hand-picked successor, William Howard Taft, was elected. Returning from a safari and European tour, Roosevelt found himself unimpressed with Taft’s performance and sought the Republican nomination in 1912. Rebuffed, he founded the Progressive Party, which included in its platform the provision of limited health insurance to low-wage earners. (Sorry, I know this is upsetting to modern Republicans, but it is true; look it up. You can take some solace in the Progressive Party’s alias: The Bull Moose Party).
By Thomas R. Kluzak, M.D. Whipping up fear, to which we respond in a visceral often irrational way, is a favorite tactic of politicians, and they especially love to be able to do it with just a few words. Thus, “death tax” has turned the tide of the American public against the estate tax, fearing…
By Thomas R. Kluzak, M.D. So, how did you answer the question, “Should everyone in the United States be entitled to health care?” Sorry, that was a trick question. It doesn’t really matter because the question has already been answered for all of us, and the answer is “yes.” The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active…
