Health plan’s merits lost in political drama

I never thought I'd live to see the day when the Republican Party would be so blinded by its contempt of one man, Barack Obama, that it would oppose the constitutionality of a law that prominent Republicans, such as Chuck Grassley and Mitt Romney, once supported (before Democrats “stole” the idea.)

The individual mandate has its roots with the conservative Heritage Foundation in 1989 as a responsible way to assure all people would have health insurance, without a government-run program. But such facts are lost upon those of the reactionary Tea Party movement. They hoped and believed that if Obama failed on health care reform, it would hasten his presidency, which obviously should not be any party's primary reason for existence.

Obama actually opposed an individual mandate as late as 2008, believing rather that the government should pay for the uninsured who don't qualify for Medicaid. An individual mandate works well in Switzerland, lowering costs, while those countries with actual socialist government-run plans as France and Great Britain face staggering costs, waiting periods and rationing.

Edward Willenborg

North Liberty