On May 26

1993, President Clinton named his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton, to chair the Task Force on National Health Care Reform. In her speech on this day, she condemned "the proponents of the status quo" who opposed a government-subsidized health care for all. She also condemned the "price gouging, cost shifting, and unconscionable profiteering" practices by doctors. "Too many people have made too much money," she said about the health care field. In tune with this, Bill Clinton addressed Congress in September of 1993, urging "to fix a health care system that is badly broken... giving every American health security-- health care that is always there."

"When people ask me about health care reform, I tell that that I am disappointed we were not able to make more progress." "Now I am from the school of smaller steps, but I believe we must continue to make progress," she said.

Making universal health care her priority in the ongoing Presidential race, Hillary Clinton lost many votes of Americans antipathetic to any sign or trace of socialism... Barack Obama made a very smart decision not to espouse the same passion and run a more 'mild' working-class platform...

"Health care is a fundamental right." These words by Hillary Clinton will echo in the ears of many Americans for decades ahead, until there is the courage to enforce this right... Hillary Clinton, while probably losing this race, has really won.

'Health care-- fundamental human right!'

Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states:

(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

This potentially is interpreted to mean that everyone should have health care provided by the government. Yet the United States has been lagging behind in this. Countries like Sweden and Norway have pretty well-run universal health care systems (here) and (here).



The critics say that the quality of such a system would be diminished greatly. Well, currently, I do not think we have any quality in the health care system in the US. I dread visiting doctors foremost because I do not have health insurance and when I visit them once a year, I do not get to see a doctor. A nurse talks to me for 5 minutes and then I get a bill for a ridiculous amount without having gotten any medical advice. I am just hoping to remain healthy while worried about my parents. So to suggest that a government-subsidized program would lower the quality is simply nonsensical. There can be both quality and universal health care. Hillary Clinton is the only presidential candidate who is offering universal health care. She fought hard for it passionately in the past and will continue fighting for it. Indeed when she says, 'health care is a fundamental human right,' she reminds me of Eleanor Roosevelt, who supplied the great spiritual power for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Perhaps we need a modern Eleanor Roosevelt like Hillary to fill the gap of needed reform...