HealthTree Blog

The new healthcare bill passed the House of Representatives on Sunday. It still must be sent to the Senate, and they must pass it.

Since President Obama began talking about a health care package, and mentioning what would or could be included in it, the rumors have been flying fast and furious. Talk of “death conferences”, where elderly people would, according to some sources, be given advice on how they could be kept comfortable until the end, rather than be given treatment options, was only one of the possibilities mentioned.

Others included speculation that our health care system would become socialized, or universal, such as the health care systems in Canada and other countries. Still other speculations dealt with the right to decide which doctor to see and other things.

Even with all the publicity about the bill, it is still difficult to determine exactly which subjects are purely speculations, which ones are part of the plan, but have possibly been misinterpreted, and which ones are really parts of the plan, and the information given has been accurate. And, the fact that the printed size of the plan itself resembles a New York phone book makes it even harder to find out information.

On top of that, upon passage of the bill, some changes would occur immediately while others would not take place for several years. So, at least for the time being, parts of the bill will still not have taken effect.

While it is true that the health care bill has raised a lot of questions and suspicions, the fact remains that no one should take something that someone says or publishes at face value. Each person, especially those who will be most affected by it, such as senior citizens, should make a concerted effort to conduct individual research, and form his or her own opinion.

As the bill progresses through Congress, more information will continue to come to light. As it does, concerned individuals can continue researching the information, and decide for themselves whether or not the new health care bill is a good thing.