There was a great series of articles in the Arizona Republic last week, reporting the results of a statewide poll on Arizona issues. The results were really encouraging for those of us who feel that progressive values are mainstream values.

Most amazing was the finding that 81% of registered voters statewide (of all parties, in all counties) believe it is time that the state or federal government step in and create a universal health care system that ensures everyone has access to medical care.

The current health insurance system is bankrupt as everyone from the indigent to the self-employed to local governments to big business is being squeezed as the big healthcare companies raise their premiums up to 30 or 40% per year.

The Republic even quoted a Republican business owner from Wickenberg as saying, “This country needs to get socialized medicine. You need to have some way for people to get medical care.”

If Republicans are starting to use the “S” word, it looks like we may be turning a corner.

The good news is, there is a model already in place in Arizona for how we can get a handle on this. As a self-employed business owner, I was able to slash my family’s healthcare premiums in half by switching to a state program called Healthcare Group of Arizona. We got better coverage with lower co-pays as a bonus.

Problem is, the Republican majority in Phoenix wants to cripple this successful program with restrictions so as not to upset lobbyists for the big health insurers. For instance, small businesses with existing coverage, no matter how expensive or insufficient, have to go without any insurance for six months before they can switch to Healthcare Group.

Let’s listen to the people of Arizona, and open Healthcare Group to all.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 9th, 2006 at 5:07 pm and is filed under 3rd Rail of the Week, Public Health, Respecting Citizens. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.