Everett, Wash.
Published: Thursday, July 2, 2009

HEALTH CARE

Doctor's drivel is symptomatic

 Dr. Roger Stark's drivel (Saturday guest commentary, "The non-competition health plan") is a feeble attempt by the very people who helped create this health care crisis to basically keep things as they are. He doesn't offer any real solutions -- he just goes into the predictable "The sky is falling, the sky is falling!" cry of what will happen if there is competition (heaven forbid) in the current health care monopoly.

He warns that "our entire health care system is at risk with this new plan." I've got news for him -- our entire health care system is at risk, now! We're spending $2.5 trillion per year (18 percent GDP) and we are nowhere near the top in health care quality.

The so-called "non-partisan organization" that Stark works for is anything but. They believe the "free market" will solve our problems. Their motto is "Improving lives through market solutions." That's the partisan mentality that led to this calamity (and the financial one, too.)

I urge readers to be mindful during this challenge to reform the health-care system and do your due diligence and check out the "independent" authors of these editorial pieces. Do a search of the talking heads on TV. Stark's self-serving logic tried to defend the death by modern medicine problem (estimated to account for 100,000-1 million deaths annually in the U.S.) by claiming a panel of physicians looked at the data and concluded it really isn't a problem. How convenient, doctors defending doctors. Do they think we're that stupid? Or are we?

Ted Neff
Edmonds
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA