Letter: Support single-payer legislation for Rhode Island

Posted 3/21/17

To the editor:

The recently proposed American Health Care Act (aka “TrumpCare”) is a disaster for American health care. According to the Congressional Budget Office, TrumpCare will …

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Letter: Support single-payer legislation for Rhode Island

Posted

To the editor:

The recently proposed American Health Care Act (aka “TrumpCare”) is a disaster for American health care. According to the Congressional Budget Office, TrumpCare will leave 52 million Americans uninsured by 2026, increase premiums (especially for the poorest and oldest among us) and give even more money to private health insurance companies and our wealthiest citizens. Given that our federal leaders are working against the interests of the vast majority of Americans, the states must act. 

Here in Rhode Island, House bill 5069 and Senate bill 154 would provide universal comprehensive health insurance to all Rhode Islanders for all necessary medical services. These bills would institute a single-payer system that would: 1) cost far less money than we pay now for our deeply flawed and inefficient multi-payer private health insurance system; 2) decrease provider administrative burdens and allow them to spend more time providing health care; and 3) help R.I. businesses by eliminating health insurance costs and administrative obligations. 

Such savings could lead to an expansion in sales and production that would increase employment in RI by nearly 3 percent, or over 14,000 additional jobs. Do we want these jobs, or would we rather Massachusetts or New York get them by reforming their health care systems first? 

For a detailed economic analysis of how single-payer would work in Rhode Island by noted economist Professor Gerald Friedman of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, go to www.singlepayerri.org. 

Also, come hear Professor Friedman discuss, “The Future of Health Care,” at a URI-sponsored symposium this Monday, March 27, at 7 p.m. at the Paff Auditorium, Shepard Building, 80 Washington St., Providence. Admission is free and validated parking is available.

The Canadian province of Saskatchewan with a population of 1 million, roughly the same as RI, ran a province-wide single payer universal insurance system for less than 8 years before the Canadian federal government recognized how much money they were saving and nationalized the program. If Canada and every other industrialized nation in the world can have a health care system that costs about half of what Americans pay with better outcomes, why can’t we? 

Please call your state legislators to urge them to support H. 5069 and S. 154 and institute single-payer in Rhode Island. 

J. Mark Ryan, MD, FACP

Chairman Physicians for a National Health Program, R.I. Chapter

155 Adams Drive

Portsmouth

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Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.