Obama Healthcare - Don’t Say You Weren’t Warned
The Wall Street Journal had a short editorial this morning the quoted an Obama statement that he would prefer a single-payer healthcare program if he was “designing a sytem from scratch.”
I wanted to hear more of the context for his statement, made at an Albuquerque, New Mexico, town hall meeting with Bill Richardson on August 18. Following is the question and his full answer (via Nexis, so I can’t link):
Q Hi, Senator Obama. My name’s Angelle St. Pierre (sp), and I’m actually from New Orleans originally but I’ve lived here for five years. (Applause.) And my husband is a doctor and he couldn’t be here because he’s seeing his patients right now, but he says hi.
SEN. OBAMA: Hi. (Laughter.)
Q And also, he and I and our friends and family as well — we’re really troubled by how profit-driven the medical industry is — not just the insurance companies but with the — what do you call prescription –
SEN. OBAMA: Drugs.
Q The drug companies, yeah.
SEN. OBAMA: Right.
Q And the hospitals — some of them have these CEOs that are making these ginormous incomes while, you know, the residents aren’t making very much or whatever.
SEN. OBAMA: Right.
Q And so profit becomes more of an issue than human rights. And is it possible to just remove the whole profit issue from medicine and make it about human rights? (Cheers, applause.) Or am I being too idealistic?
