Another day, another round of pandering

Figures Rudy is against universal health care. He's really trying to position himself as Mr. Free-Market Conservative here. It's kind of sad.

“I don’t like mandates,” Giuliani says. “I don’t like mandating health care. I don’t like it because it erodes what makes health care work in this country — the free market, the profit motive...."

I know this guy never cared to listen to anyone's advice when he was mayor, but someone should explain to him why free markets and health care don't mix so well. Things like HMOs and Big Pharma and all that. I'll go out on a limb and offer my own opinion here: People's health care is just too important to leave in the hands of the free market. The free market can't handle it and this blathering about free markets is why health care in this country is in a state of crisis.

"A mandate takes choice away from people. We’ve got to let people make choices. We’ve got to let them take the risk–do they want to be covered? Do they want health insurance? Because ultimately, if they don’t, well, then, they may not be taken care of. I suppose that’s difficult.” He lets the idea sink in, though it seems to bother his audience not at all. “The minute you start mandating, you always end up with more expensive government programs.”

Uh, Rudy? What choices do you mean? When a person accepts a job, that person accepts one or more health plans offered by his/her employer. The employee has a very limited say in his/her health plan. And God forbid if it's an HMO.

The other option (for independent contractors or people whose jobs don't offer insurance) is a private insurance plan. Those are very expensive. Not everyone can afford this. If a person doesn't get insurance through his/her spouse, there is going to be a serious problem. The person will have to pray he/she doesn't get sick or doesn't have an accident.

So, Rudy...what are these health care choices you're talking about? It goes without saying that everyone wants health insurance. It's just that there are lots of people who would love to have it and can't get it.

Americans, as of now, HAVE no real health care choices. That's all there is to it. And it's nice to know at least one GOP hopeful has nothing but empty rhetoric to offer the American public. Sigh...