What ONE thing is most important in a new health care system?

A single payer foundation.

Ditto. Remove the third party profiteers. I want a single-payer system.

Caps based on acturial tables.

Reply to most important in new health care system

I too am for single payer - must be non profit. To let Corporations continue to make profits from our high premiums
needs to stop now. It's really insane. Think of all the administration cost that are duplicated over and over again in each and every insurance co., think of the salaries and perks for CEO's and executives in each and every insurance co., I won't go on and on, but one more issue, it's way past time for our elected represenatives to get the insurance corp. out of their pockets.........oh and dental ins. should be part of the plan. This is my first post and I thank you for the question.

Valuing nurses!

"Access to health care"

Affordable and guaranteed "non employer related" access to health care for everyone... This is not to imply the word "socialism" per se, but rather I prefer to call it a public safety net similar to the Social Security program etc.

Additionally, there seems to be a lot of scare mongering going on about the quality of delivered care involved with implementing a new health care system. ...On the contrary, I actually feel this will become the opposite in actual reality.

..Why you ask?

Firstly, according to some studies conducted in 2009, there are now approx. 87 million Americans without health insurance today! ...87 Million!

(Source: http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/03/04...pidemic.obama/)

This is primarily because many people can no longer afford the current (employer related) health care insurance system we have in place.

Secondly, let's rewind back to the original quality of care statement for a moment...

"Access to health care" in my opinion, is one specific measure involving the quality of care people are getting today. So far, 87 million Americans under the current system we already have in place today are getting a big "0" in quality care because you have to actually get health care, before you can get ANY quality (good or bad ) health care...

Again, the "quality of care" isn't the issue and the facts don't lie and speak for themselves.

Ask yourself..

If 87 million people are no longer paying for health care.. then who is footing the bill?

In conclusion, Is it any real mystery why "access to health care" has become beyond the reach of an average person and is now only available to the privileged remainder? The current failing health care insurance system is somehow supposed to equate to mean offering better "quality" health care for all according to some "concerned sources?"

NO CAPS!!! Just appropriate care based on actual need!

Costs don't reflect appropriate charges, now . Not for doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical, and DME, as they're grossly inflated to provide profits!

Covering everyone regardless of whether they have a preexisting condition or a job.

A lot of sick people lose their jobs, and as soon as COBRA runs out (if they can afford it in their unemployed state), they have nothing...until they have run through all they had and are indigent, and Medicaid kicks in. And it's hard to get Medicare because it takes a long time to convince them you are disabled; then you have to wait 2 years after a declaration of disability to get Medicare. My husband died of a brain tumor long before he would have been eligible for Medicare. He was able to get on my insurance, but what if he were alone (as I am now)?

Allow only legitimate litigation against institutions/providers.