McCain Health Care Adviser: "There are no uninsured."

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The Dallas Morning News (via the NOW! blog) is reporting that John Goodman, president of the National Center for Policy Analysis and Health Care Adviser to the McCain campaign, wants the next president to issue an executive order to reclassify the uninsured -- as insured! Can it really be that simple?

"So I have a solution. And it will cost not one thin dime," Mr. Goodman said. "The next president of the United States should sign an executive order requiring the Census Bureau to cease and desist from describing any American – even illegal aliens – as uninsured. Instead, the bureau should categorize people according to the likely source of payment should they need care.

"So, there you have it. Voila! Problem solved."

Wow.

Off the top of my head, here is a list of health services essential to a person's well-being that one cannot get at the emergency room:

  • Dental care
  • Optical care
  • Physical therapy
  • Routine physical
  • Preventive care

Nevermind that once a health problem warrants a visit to the emergency room, treating it will be up to four times more expensive than it otherwise would have been, the fact that one's proximity to an emergency room should be considered an insurance plan is ludicrous.

This is not quality, affordable health care we all can count on, it's a smokescreen to put off the difficult task of fixing our broken health care system. Every single person has a right to health care, and that includes the essential preventive services not available at the emergency room.

The over-reliance on emergency care is yet another problem with the broken health care system. It is true that no person will be denied care at the emergency room due to inability to pay, but what about the people who cannot get to an emergency room? The overall number of visits to the ER is on the rise, yet the overall number of emergency rooms is on the decline.

Mr. Goodman can call the uninsured whatever he wants, but those of us who are working to fix the broken health care system will not -- and should not -- take him seriously.

If you can help us work toward fixing the broken health care system, sign up here.