Healthcare Lies in Delgado vs. Kucinich Healthcare Debate

Today Jane Delgado, President of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, falsely claimed in an NPR debate with Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) that "most Americans are happy with their health insurance" and that a single-payer healthcare system would deny Americans choice in doctors and hospitals -- "which is an American value."

To start with, I have yet to see any data that says most Americans are happy with their HMO/PPOs and would not choose Medicare if they had that as an option. Second of all, we've repeatedly seen in polling that a majority of Americans would like to have the choice of a single-payer style Medicare plan. Lastly, a single-payer system would not deny you the choice to see whatever doctor at whatever hospital you'd like, as a single-payer system basically would operate like Medicare -- in that the government operates a low-cost, efficient health insurance program, and doctors and hospitals stay privately run and competitive.

Delgado's strident criticism of European-style healthcare systems and her lies about the single payer solution could be born in the fact that her organization, the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, sponsors events with Kaiser Permanente and other big health insurance companies, which have a vested interest in not competing with Medicare.

Unfortunately, Dr. Delgado was a key player in the White House Healthcare Forum, while only two single payer advocates were invited to the forum only after threatening to picket outside the White House.

If this healthcare "debate" we're having in this country proves anything, it is that special interests and organized money still have too much clout over our political process.