By Tierney Modglin — WEEK-TV, Peoria
October 9, 2009
Multimedia
Click balloon below to view video at WEEK’s website.
SOME YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE AREA ARE FEELING THE NEED TO CLARIFY A STATEMENT MADE BY CONGRESSMAN AARON SCHOCK.
THIS COMES AFTER A SEPTEMBER INTERVIEW SCHOCK DID WITH FOX NEWS.
IN THE INTERVIEW SCHOCK SAID YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE REJECTED PRESIDENT OBAMA’S PUSH FOR HEALTH CARE REFORM, BECAUSE THEY PREFER AN OPTION WITH MORE CHOICES.
TODAY, “THE CAMPAIGN FOR BETTER HEALTH CARE”, –A GROUP DEDICATED TO UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE IN AMERICA– PRODUCED SOME YOUNG PEOPLE WHO SAID THEY DIDN’T FEEL SCHOCK’S STATEMENTS REPRESENTED THEIR DESIRES FOR HEALTH CARE REFORM.
Brooke Summerville says, “We need healthcare and we’re begging you and we’re also begging you to please support this healthcare reform and the public option and for you to please have a press conference with us where we can speak to you and tell you our problems and then you can judge what all the young Americans want after this conference.”
THESE YOUNG PEOPLE SAY THEY TRIED TO CONTACT CONGRESSMAN SCHOCK NUMEROUS TIMES BUT HAVE NOT RECEIVED A RESPONSE.
SCHOCK’S OFFICE SAYS THE CONGRESSMAN ATTENDED A HEALTH CARE FORUM HELD BY THE GROUP IN MAY.
I attended the press conference on Friday, along with about 45 to 50 other people. The young adults who spoke completely discredited Aaron Schock’s comments made on Fox News on Sept. 20. In fact, Schock’s comments seemed to be nothing but talking points handed to him by Boehner and Canter before he went on camera.
Yes, Schock attended the forum in May, but we are at a different juncture in the health care debate, and it is his responsiblity to return to the 18th Congressional District and field the questions of his constitutents–of all ages–regarding health care as it stands now.
If Schock has time to fly done to Honduras and visit Gitmo, he should have time to dialogue with the people of the 18th.
With all due respect to Jim and those who shared his passion to attempt to persuade Congressman Aaron Schock to support health care reform, this is a waste of energy.
Not because Schock is evil or because he is personally opposed to health care reform or fails to recognize the current system’s problems. No, I frankly give Schock more intellectual credit than that.
The reason this is a wasted effort is because Schock is an ambitious junior Republican who is smart enough to understand that his political future will not be assisted by breaking with his party leaders regardless of how cynically misguided they may be. The Republican leadership has made it painfully clear that this is entirely a political issue unrelated to the merits of any argument for or against any variation on health care reform. Virtually no Republican in either the House or the Senate will break with their party leaders regardless of how this stance is viewed in their districts.
What we must do if real health care reform is to have a chance is to make sure that the Democrats in Congress don’t fall victim to a similar form of cynical political coercion. It seems increasingly likely that Democratic leaders of both the House and the Senate as well as the White House will pressure Democratic members of Congress to support whatever health reform package survives regardless of how weak or ineffective that legislation may be. We need to reassure members like Congressman Phil Hare and Senators Durbin and Burris that we don’t want them to settle for token reform just to be able to claim a victory, however hollow.
“The Campaign For Better Health Care” may have produced some young people that support a public option health plan. But, the fact is that young people are one of the largest groups of the population that choose not to participate in the insurance system that is very inexpensive at their age. With the public option young people will have no choice but to pay for insurance coverage. How many of these young invincibles will support a system that mandated they pay for something they would otherwise choose not to pay for?
Dan, welcome to the website! Glad to have you.
Regarding your comment: The Campaign For Better Health Care had no particular trouble locating young adults who want health insurance. Actually, the young people at the press conference viewed a public option as providing them with choice and not as a mandate. To be sure, in the four congressional bills that provide for a public option, that government plan would appear in an exchange along with private plans as only one choice. Also, I don’t think that an assumption should be made that the uninsured will only select the government plan. One young person said at the press conference that the government Choice-Competion Plan (aka public option) would simply serve to tide him over until he could get a job with insurance or pay for a private plan in the exchange that afforded him better care at comparable cost. For a references, I have posted an editorial from the New York Times and an article on the “Young Invincibles.”
Concerning a mandate that we get health insurance: As long as it’s made affordable, I have no problem with that. In order to “promote the general welfare,” it’s essential that we do many things that we may not like or of which we may not even be supportive–carry car insurance, wear a seat belt, stop at red lights when no other vehicle is around, pay taxes, smoke fifteen feet from a public building, install smoke detectors in rental property, wear a flotation device in a boat, and the list could go on. There may be young people who don’t like or support mandated health insurance, but for the common good they have to be in the system.
Sure, they’re healthy and think they don’t need insurance–until they get sick or hurt. When they do get sick or injured and are without insurance, then they receive treatment when it is most expensive; furthermore, they receive treatment without having put anything into the system. The cost incurred by any uninsured person gets passed along to those who are insured or is eaten by various medical entities.
In addition, the youthful uninsured should be in the system precisely because they are a healthy group. If we are going to insure virtually every American, then we must include the very group who will take less out of the system than they put into it–young adults.
Thanks for the dialogue, Dan.