We all know that the United States remains the only industrialized country in the world that doesn’t guarantee health care to all its citizens and that 46 million Americans remain uninsured and millions more underinsured, yet health care spending represents almost 20% of our GDP. Even those who’ve managed to maintain their insurance have seen their rates go up and their deductibles rise. 60 percent of all bankruptcies in 2007 were due to medical debts.  

I have no ideological preference for government programs, commercial plans or even hybrid forms of coverage.   What is crystal clear, however, is that no citizen -- rich or poor, young or old -- should be denied access to affordable health care - period. And no business should be forced to subcontract off-shore or be pushed to the brink of insolvency simply because it has employees.

Everyone knows our health care system is broken and there’s no mystery why. Health care costs are rising at twice the rate of inflation. There are many reasons for these dramatic cost escalations, including a reimbursement system that rewards inefficiencies and a legal system that punishes our providers.  Yes, it is complicated and yes, it is in the hands of our Congress and President to correct it, which is exactly where we can start a simple method to successfully address this health care conundrum:

Although no one remembers a ballot measure where we were asked to vote for a special healthcare program for our elected officials, Representatives and Senators alike receive some of the best health care benefits in the country.  Taxpayer dollars pay up to 75 percent of the premiums for their comprehensive coverage and unlike many Americans who must struggle against precondition clauses or are even denied coverage because of those preconditions; Senators and Representatives are covered no matter what - effective immediately.   

Why not make their plan the starting point for developing a strategy to provide affordable coverage for all Americans?  But of course, we all know that their insurance is far too expensive for our nation as a whole, so let’s back it down until all of us, including Congress, gets covered by a universal plan that our country can afford.  The formation of a single insurance risk pool to leverage down insurance prices for all citizens and the implementation of unitary pricing, where everyone gets the same discount and pays the same price for the same product or service will work wonders to dramatically lower the cost to administer health care. Make coverage available through multiple sources and set deductibles at something manageable, like three percent of a household’s taxable federal income and we will find ourselves well on our way to successfully resolving this shameful situation. 

This approach forms the foundation of universal coverage and it in no way restricts anyone from electing to pay more for premium care.  But realize this - only when Congress and our President share the same health coverage with the rest of America will they have the commitment and urgency to implement a workable plan.  And only by giving them a vested stake in our health care will they remain incentivized to continue to make improvements by taking on those wrenching systemic changes that need to be made, including weaning themselves from the political patrons that so strongly influence today’s debate - be they trial lawyers, pharmaceutical manufacturers or anyone else whose profits stand in the way of our national interests.