In our morning paper there was an article about Bernie Sanders who has introduced legislation in the senate to establish a real single payer health care plan. This is not the watered down version promulgated by Obama and Senator Bauckus who are discouraging participation of single-payer advocates in the debate about revamping health care. I sent him a note.

Dear Senator Sanders:

Hi…. I was delighted to see coverage of your single-payer health care initiative this morning in the Free Press. I only hope that you’ll be able to convince your colleagues that have been corrupted by the insurance companies campaign contributions.

I don’t think this issue takes on the urgency that it might since all members of Congress are covered by a single payer government provided health care plan. Hey….all we want is what you guys have!

I’ve lived both in Canada (single payer), and German (hybrid single payer+employer system) and both systems were far superior to what ordinary Americans are able to get even in Burlington with Fletcher Allen and a high-deductible CIGNA policy obtained through the Chamber of Commerce.

The amount of energy and frustration to say nothing of the dollar cost that we personally invest in attempting to manage our personal health care is just crazy. And we are the “lucky” ones with health insurance, and good hospitals and doctors.

Thanks for your advocacy on this issue. It should be at the top of the everyone’s list.

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I still like reading our printed paper. For one thing, it doesn’t provide ad-links to colon cleansing products. In fact the Gannett web site which hosts the paper (it is a Gannett paper) is a disaster.