Here's the plan... due date May 31... pass it on...

Its insane to think that the United States can be competitive globally when every other industrialized nation in the world has some form of universal health care coverage. I have never met someone who thought that the current health care situation is good or sustainable.

Give me 10 minutes and 5 dollars. Make politics about good ideas not attack ads.

Take a quick second. What is something every one of us has in common? We all need a doctor at some point. And the realities of the economy today, the realities of decent medical coverage in 2007 mean we all need health insurance. Something like 45 million Americans lack it. The rest spend great deals of stress, money, and job immobility trying to keep it. Why doesn't every other industrialized nation have 45 million uninsured? Why doesn't every other industrialized nation have runaway health care inflation? Its because they all have some form of universal coverage.

Here's what I’m asking. This month go to every single candidate currently running for President. Look at their health care plan. And give 5 dollars to the candidate with the best plan on May 31st. Ignore the horse race, ignore partisan leanings. Make that 5 dollars be about the best idea on health care on May 31st 2007. Now hear me out. Why this month, why online? Why not in a speech I saw or an interview I heard? Because you have to draw the line somewhere. Not everyone can hear a speech, or see an interview. But every single candidate can (one might offer: "should want to") put on their website their position on health care.

If you want politics to be about ideas not smear tactics then you have to start praising good behavior and punishing bad. "Politician no serious talk about health care. Politician no get my five dollars." And if your candidate of choice isn't the one who ends up with that five dollars then you have even more incentive to get on them about it. You mention that you are a supporter but they just lost your five dollars, you want them to start addressing health care in a serious manner. Not just platitudes. Platitudes with no plan means more of the same. Because at the end of the day some plan is going to have to take on all the special interests groups. Health care is big bucks and you know every single profiteer will fight to stop change. The status quo is big bucks for some people, but I’m not talking to "some people." This is about you, big bucks doesn't help you when you get a catastrophic illness, when you are denied coverage for preexisting conditions, when you are stuck in a job because the threat of losing your insurance is held over your head. No plan is going to be perfect but that is why we demand our politicians start thinking and talking now. We want to hear the ideas, we don't want them in a back room somewhere. Let the voters vet before the bureaucrats vet.

Imagine if the 45 million people without health insurance sent in 5 dollars, if the millions upon millions of unsatisfied citizens who wanted something other than the status quo sent in 5 dollars? Politicians would start talking, and thinking, health insurance solutions.They'll say its too early to talk big issues. You'll say 5 dollars won't do a thing. But neither are true if we don't want them to be.