Hi Tony and thanks for weighing in. For what it's worth, people will scream, regardless of the Supreme Court ruling, which should come down sometime in June.
It just depends on how their bread is buttered. Personally, I'm all for tweaking/improving the system if possible (like rooting out fraud), without throwing out the baby with the bathwater. We have medicare for the disabled and seniors, we have public aid for the indigent, we have the CHIP program for those that are uninsurable otherwise and we have "Kidcare" for children (successfully pushed through by our now incarcerated governor). Do some folks, given all those safety nets, still manage to slip through the cracks? Sure. But remember Tony, the government cannot give anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. Why do kings and foreign dignitaries, who could go anywhere for care, choose to use our healthcare delivery system? In my view, this bill is loading with red flags. What does hiring 16,000 IRS agents have to do with health care delivery? Do you want to continue to pay medical bills for those here illegally?
I can't begin to tell you how many homes I've visited who had a wall to wall plasma TV and a new car in the driveway, but no health insurance. Health insurance isn't tangible...until you need it!

Indeed. It can be argued that this healthcare legislation is a convenient cover for the most massive transfer of power to the Executive Branch of government that this country has ever seen. There is absolutely nothing in the text of the U.S Constitution granting authority to members of Congress to regulate healthcare. NOTHING. Yet they try anyway. Sadly, this legislation may be more about seizing power and limiting rights rather than healthcare. The right to privacy may also be legislated into oblivion. We must all hope and pray that the Supreme Court will do the right thing, leaving politics entirely out of the equasion. Beyond that, showing up at the polls in the fall, in numbers greater than what we recorded for the Golf District 67 vote, is imperative.

Your 50 million figure is about 20 million to high but statistics are fun to use in arguments. Mr Obama himself uses 30 million on a regular basis.
That number, though not completely eliminated, is substantially reduced by the four forms of delivery I mentioned above (medicaid, medicare, CHIP, Kid Care). Believe it or not there are millions more who qualify for those options but for whatever reason remained on the sidelines instead of applying and going through the process. Of those left remaining, the lion's share of them are here illegally who don't pay taxes but use our resources. Kind of hard to compel "ghosts" to pay their fair share. Rather than forcing others to pay for them as you allude to, how about deportation instead? My suggestion to you would be to read House Bill 3200: AHCCA of 2009...In any event, medicare has been well funded because seniors and their employers have been paying into the system for over 40 years! Thats THEIR money. Pre-funded benefits, if you will. Millions die before collecting a penny in benefits. You are entitiled to "your hopes" Cynthia. We'll all see what happens, it is estimated, by June.
In my view, rationing of healthcare on the backs of seniors, medical decisions made by federal bureaucrats, waiting six months or more for a CT Scan or MRI (Socialized Medicine),additional taxes imposed on us, is not the path we want to travel.
There is a world of difference between treating people equally, and attempting to make them equal.

Hi Cynthia. A civil, cogent discussion is always welcome, as are your stated wishes for the direction our country ultimately takes. I would caution about taking "everything you read in the papers" as gospel. The media has it's own agenda. Assuming Mr Obama read the teleprompter correctly, he has used "over 30 million uninsured" numerous times. Your figure is low...maybe for Arizona and California only? The number of deportations under both presidents has been abysmal. One having more than the other doesn't really say much. Our current president has spoken alot more about amnesty than he has about deportation. CHIP covers adults. Please read up a bit on socialized medicine. It IS scary. No need to embellish. Look at the long waits for tests that need to be done and the red tape before the test is actually approved. Medicare IS managed to the point where they pay 80% of the "approved amount." This is why seniors need supplements to pay for co-payments, deductibles and excess charges. It's not "free" to seniors (unless they opt for a Medicare Advantage Plan/HMO which is limited, restrictive and terribly costly to fund). Last year our government spent over $9 Billion dollars more on seniors with MA Plans, than if those same seniors simply had medicare and a supplement or medicare and medicaid, if indigent. Despite all these programs, options and safety nets, people still manage to falls through the cracks, but at nowhere near the numbers you suggest.

I'll leave your "warning" about "scare tactics" be the last word, Cynthia. You win. The facts (not tactics) regarding socialized medicine are all contrived and false, designed to irritate you. Fair enough? I assume the Canadians and Europeans who find our system sorely lacking arent the ones waiting 6 to 9 months to get a CAT scan or an MRI? Are those the same ones that come to America when they need quality immediate care, like leaders, indeed kings of foreign nations do on a regular basis? No system is perfect, Cynthia, including ours. In your view, an absolute overhaul is required while I would instead focus on repairing, tweeking and strengthening....such as rooting out fraud and of course, addressing the illegal situation that we have looked the other way on, for far too long. As far as "needs vs wants" I would have health insurance for my family BEFORE I have cable installed with a hefty monthly cable bill. But that's me. To each his own. Though I disagree with alot of your statements, I respect your right to voice them and appreciate your civil discourse without going off the deep end. Sadly, at this point, regardless of our personal views, based on experience, the Supreme Court holds all the cards at this point. Their decision should come fairly soon. As you know, if it upholds "Obamacare" (which I doubt it will), Romney, as you know, if elected, promises to repeal it immediately. Never a dull moment huh?