I'm excited... kinda sorta.

Tonight's debate is gonna rock. Maybe. I hope. I'm way more into this election then I ever have been before and I'm usually pretty into these things.

I have to be honest and I don't think I'm alone here, but I can't say I'm a guru on many of the issues. I know there was a bailout passed and this credit crisis has wreaked havoc on the stock market, but I have a lot to learn when it comes to the economy, foreign policy, etc etc. BUT, I do know a thing or two about health care and I want to SCREAM at McCain when he talks about his "plan". AKA, more of the same. What we have now has FAILED and more and more people are getting sicker, older, and broke because of health care in the US. Its just gonna get worse if no one does something radical. I know that word "radical" is scary, but radical is the only way to make a true difference. Band-aid approaches are crap.

From what I've heard over the debates, McCain wants to give a $5K credit to any family who gets health care. Great. BUT - getting individual insurance is the issue that no one is talking about. Even if you're a normal person, you can't get individual insurance - its impossible! You have to be perfectly healthy 100% of the time for your entire life. (And FYI, thats what makes employer based health care so awesome - that rule is not there.) OK, but lets just say I'm a total pessimist and the 46 million uninsured have a perfect bill of health... the 5K isn't going to do squat! My health premiums are way over that each year. And, I've had some crazy medical bills this year (car accidents rock) so I've paid a ton into coinsurance, co payments and deductibles. Yep, I've had all three. Awesome. So - now we'll be turning the issue from uninsured to underinsured. This means people still won't go see the doctor when something comes up. And the whole cycle will begin again...

The difference with Obama... he's basically trying to expand what Congress gives itself to those that don't have employer based health coverage. He's also requiring coverage of kids through either expanding Medicaid or CHIP (low income state run program). The nice benefit of requiring people to have insurance - once everyone is insured, the overall risk is lower and premiums go down. Until then, individuals are assumed more risky because they basically know that they are sick and the insurers have no idea.

Anyway...Obama's plan could be better, but at least its a step in the right direction. I know I'm biased (thanks to my public healthification), but I could go on and on about why a national health system is way better. I know the free market is the foundation of our economy, but we have nationalized programs all over the place... Social Security, Medicare, education, police, fire... why did we stop at health care? What makes health so special?

And at the very least, I don't cringe when I hear Obama speak - but I want to puke all over McCain. And um, not to mention... McCain is old. Too old.

Check out the details from CNN - its a pretty easy read.