George Erdel, Democrat running for the Tennessee 6th District Congressional seat, opposes the healthbill, wants to strip/radically reduce the provisions if elected.
From his website...
You can read more here for context http://www.georgefortennessee.com/id7.htmlAs I discuss this issue let me make a foundational statement about our health care delivery system. Our existing U.S. healthcare system is the absolute best in the world, that much is undisputable. Could it be improved upon? By all means, anything can be made better and our health care delivery system is no exception. We fondly look back to the “Good Old Days” and remember how little we seemed to pay for things we need for every day living expenses and health care is probably at the top of the list. What we seldom think of is the amount of involvement by the Federal Government has contributed to the steep rise in health care costs. Folks, when the U.S. Government requires those providing health care and insurance to do it to their specifications, which includes restrictions and mandates, it forces prices to rise. For example when they require hospitals to provide health care to illegal aliens whose mere presence in our state is a violation of Federal and State law, when they have no means of paying for the services rendered, someone has to pay for those services. Who else is there to pay for them but you, through your insurance and even taxpayer dollars which subsidize so much of the medical industry?
Other government involvement prevents medical insurance companies from competition in every state throughout the entire country. Free enterprise competition would make the total financial costs of medical insurance plummet to lows we have not seen in decades. Can you remember in the early 1980’s when the AT&T was the only long distance telephone company one could use? My family had to literally plan when we wanted to make those precious long distance calls to keep in touch with loved ones across the state or across the nation. Long distance rates ranged from 40 cents per minute for within state long distance, up to two dollars per minute to call Alaska or Hawaii. Now that we have the ability to choose our telephone carriers we are able to obtain phone plans that have FREE LONG DISTANCE.
The Federal Government has made laws that actually EXEMPT the largest Medical Insurance companies from the very anti-trust laws that prevent monopolies from getting a stranglehold on those purchasing their products. I will work to eliminate those exemptions to antitrust laws so that will result in true INTERSTATE COMPETITION, which will give you, the insurance shopper, a true freedom of choice when it comes to your procurement of medical insurance.
Another needed change is honest tort reform which will limit the abilities of high powered lawyers to hold the medical providers hostage with threats of outrageous “PUNITIVE” damages. This is not to say that honest damage awards would be prevented, however, for a litigant to receive punitive damages many times the actual physical damages awarded. You have seen in the past months the Liberal congress absolutely refuse to consider tort reform because they were fearful of the Attorney Lobbyist and the American Bar Association.
If you make me your Congressman, I will move immediately to address these areas of broad agreement. The only thing keeping them from becoming law are liberal refusals to separate them from their larger goal – government run health care that limits choice, restricts freedom and gives you less say in your health care decisions in favor of boards, panels and bureaucrats. I oppose government-run healthcare.
Does that qualify under the criteria we set forth?
And to you both, for my part, I'm just going to make the submission, let Dd review and decide, and then move on. I think in the interest of an honest bet, both Lurker and I should refrain from arguing a referee call. Once the call is made, its made, end of story, at least for me. This is a gentleman's bet, and as much as I disagree with Lurker on numerous topics, I consider him to be in that category.
