An open letter to Max Baucus, Senator from Montana, on the issue of a single payer health care system

Max, as you may know, I no longer live in the Helena, Montana neighborhood where we both grew up. I moved to Canada in 1970 and, although I remain an American Citizen, I have never regretted my decision to live in Canada.

One of the strongest reasons for my move to Canada was universal health care. My reasons then were that if we Americans had the resources to sustain undeclared wars that cost of millions of dollars a week (now millions of dollars a minute) then we certainly should have sufficient resources to provide basic health care to all Americans. In Canada we actually have a good single payer health care system that works.

Contrary to some of the current negative publicity by insurance companies and HMO's that continue to fleece Americans in absolutely outrageous ways and at outlandish prices; the Canadian system of health care, while continually pressed by the increasing costs of providing health care, is an outstanding example of people doing together, what we cannot afford to do individually.

I implore you to listen to Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of one or your ex colleagues, John Edwards.

Elizabeth Edwards has got it right! A single payer system is the only way that the government of the United States can provide a balanced, universal health care system.

If universal health care can be provided in Canada, a country of less than 40 million people with other infrastructure demands almost as great as the U.S. and if Cuba, one of the poorest countries in the so called developed world can provide universal health care then surely the United States can do the same.

A single payer system is really the only way. This is social democracy...not socialism...in action; people working together to provide what we cannot afford to do individually.