Who are these millions of uninsured in America? The American spectator magazine reported 17% of them are in 50-70 thousand dollars income range who choose not to purchase insurance. There are about 14 million who are eligible for Medicaid or SCHIP programs, but out of neglect/ ignorance have not applied to these programs. Then we have 12 million people who have no legal status in this country.

Health care occupies a major portion of our GDP. It needs reform but not at the expense of political expediency as this Administration desires. Individuals and families should take control of their healthcare. Health insurance should not be tied to one’s employment as it is in most instances. The notion that one’s job provides “free healthcare” is false. The employer factors the cost of health insurance when setting the salary.

Hence individuals and families should be empowered to purchase health insurance that fits their needs. Health insurance plans should be made available across states lines, just as car insurance. This opens up health insurance market for nationwide competition. It would lower the price of health insurance and also solves the problem of portability. No one should bypass a better job opportunity for fear of losing health coverage.

If individuals and families are to purchase their own health insurance, they should be given tax credits of $2500 and $6000 respectively. This is no different than government giving tax breaks to companies providing health insurance to employees. Within limits everyone should be able to pay for minor routine office visits. (Don’t we do that for our pets?). This would reduce premiums as it would promote discretion when seeking healthcare.

Finally no health care reform is feasible without tort reform. The 1100 page healthcare reform bill – doubt if the president and legislatures have read it- makes no mention about medical liability reform. The truth is that medical liability is a major issue in this country and poses an impediment to access of care. Our runaway jury awards better known as “jackpot justice” is estimated to cost $124 billion a year and adds 3.4 million Americans to the roll of the uninsured, according to the Pacific Research Institute.

This administration healthcare reform is a reckless, very expensive, one size fit all reform. It deprives Americans of their most cherished right………. The right to choose. Where happened to the champions of personal responsibility??