By Holly Bailey-Hofmann
In his July 31 commentary "Price of socialized medicine is too high," L.K. Samuels errs in logic by using a present-day example (Edith Rodriguez, the unfortunate victim of 'care' at a Los Angeles hospital) to predict the future. On the contrary, what Samuels' example illustrates is that radical change is necessary, because the status quo isn't working. A new idea might present new challenges, but change can yield improvement.
It enrages me when politicians and business people — who no doubt have decent healthcare themselves — use scare tactics to bully the populace into voting against change. The future of American healthcare is not limited to the disaster scenario described by naysayers; there are many options, but we must be free to consider them first! Politicians and big business will always find a way to exploit the status quo for their own interests. Isn't it time for the rest of us to get something too?
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 6, 2007. Read the original PDF.