Health Care

Health Care Reform, Position Summary

Betty Hall, Candidate for NH Senate

 

The US Health Care system is broken:

 

•  The number of Americans without health insurance now exceeds 47 million (in NH, 11% of the population is uninsured).

•  The World Health Organization ranks the US healthcare system 72nd in the world for overall performance (just below Sri Lanka, Albania, and Macedonia, and just above Iraq!).

•  We spend twice as much per capita as Europe, Canada, or Japan, yet rank far below them in performance level.

•  Approximately 30% of healthcare spending in the US goes to the insurance companies for administration and profit, without benefit to the patient.

•  There are large disparities in healthcare delivery along racial, ethnic and socio-economic lines. Our for-profit system discriminates, and is undemocratic.

•  For even those insured, the cost of premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket expenses can cripple a family. Our for-profit system has not contained healthcare costs.

•  Medical bills cause about one half of all personal bankruptcies.

•  Healthcare costs to businesses are crippling competitiveness and undermining the economy.



I support a universal, single-payer, national healthcare system that is publicly funded and privately delivered.

 

•  Every person in the United States has a right to equitable, affordable, quality healthcare, regardless of race, ethnicity, income level, employment status, or pre-existing conditions.

•  Care should include preventive care, dental care, mental health care, long-term care, and affordable prescription drugs.

•  Every person must have the freedom to choose their health care providers.

•  Private insurance companies and their overhead should be eliminated (enough savings to cover everyone in the US).

•  Care should continue to be delivered by the excellent infrastructure of the private healthcare system. 

•  The burden on business must be reduced.

 

I support the efforts of the Granite State Physicians for a National Health Program (http://nh.pnhp.org) and will use the powers of my office to promote legislation such as The United States National Health Insurance Act (HR676), sponsored by Congressman Conyers and 92 other US Representatives.