This year my healthcare insurance premiums increased by 230%, but I still sucked it up and paid. Next year the premium will only go up a meager 15%. Suffice to say, I did flips with the news of this “windfall.”

And I’m one of the lucky ones! The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) claims that there are 46.3 million uninsured Americans (John Briley, AARP Bulletin Today, September 11, 2009). With approximately 305 million people living in the United States, that means 15% of the population can’t afford to get sick! The figure is not only astoundingly mind-boggling…..it’s a disgrace.

Before delving into the ongoing healthcare reform initiated by President Barack Obama, with bills wending their way through five Congressional committees, we have to appreciate the current landscape. Right-wing Republicans are, by their own admission, hell-bent on making the president fail at every turn. The President should not count on any cooperation from that part of the Republican Party. These Republicans are spreading false rumors, spewing hatred and hoping that the public will be riled up (or scared) enough to say “no” to everything that Obama proposes, without giving it a fair hearing.

Naysayers are claiming that the American healthcare system is fine just the way it is, and that Obama wants to institute socialized medicine. Yes, the healthcare system is great….if you are working! Lose your job and you are one catastrophic illness away from losing your home or your life savings. Even though the U.S. has many good doctors, the country has more infant deaths per capita than Canada, Sweden, France and even Cuba (CDC, NCHS Data Brief, November 2009). And, by the way, those other countries have the dreaded socialized medicine disease!

If socialized medicine was as bad as Republicans want us to believe, then these other countries should be suffering from the plague. The fact is that in countries with government-sponsored healthcare, the citizens are healthier on average than in the United States. The simple reason is that they are able to go to the doctor whenever they are sick without worrying about the financial implications.

Which takes us to the “dreaded” public option scenario in Obama’s original plan. The idea was that the government would administer a healthcare plan that would compete with private industry to help keep costs down and provide more affordable option for the citizenry. Opponents coined the term “ObamaCare” to describe this governmental intrusion into the most hallowed of industries. Insurance companies are scaring people by saying that their premiums will increase. Yes friends, your premiums will increase because these insurance companies are going to increase their premiums in anticipation of more affordable competition. You might remember the credit card companies increasing their rates as legislation limiting interest rates made its way to the Senate this past summer. The legislation failed, but credit card companies still dug the knife deeper into the backs of consumers by keeping their rates high.

Similarly, insurance companies will raise their rates just in case the future brings added competition from the government.

I think all this opposition to the president trying to help those without healthcare insurance points to mean-spirited behavior coming from moderate Democrats and Republicans. The next time any of these politicians decry socialized medicine, ask them what kind of healthcare plan they have. Members of Congress have health insurance for life that is fully paid by the taxpayers. They have no problem accepting this largesse from us. What is wrong with the public having something similar to this? What about Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security? These are government-run programs that are almost untouchable come budget time

So friends, we already have public options. It’s just that these hypocritical and selfish members of Congress want to deny the rest of the public the sort of healthcare benefits that have been extended to them as part of the ruling class.

In a survey conducted by Drs. Salomeh Keyhani and Alex Federman of Mount Sinai School of Medicine earlier this year, they found that 73% of doctors supported the public option, even though the leaders of the American Medical Association (AMA) were against it. The AMA leadership apparently thinks that any government-run program will lead to doctors getting lower fees. Even if this happens, what’s wrong with us giving back a little so that all Americans can have the benefit of affordable healthcare? Again, the selfishness of those who have at the expense of those who have not.

This is one time when I think liberal Democrats should hold out for as long as possible to get this public option into any bill that comes to the floor. They need to turn back the lies about socialized medicine. No system is perfect, but to vilify something that has worked for years in Europe is silly. Europeans have been far better off than Americans for the kind of healthcare system they have had.

Let’s not talk about waiting long to see a doctor. I pay plenty to be part of the vaunted American healthcare system, and sometimes I have to wait a month or more to see a specialist!

In the final analysis, President Obama will have to decide if the campaign promise of a better and more equitable healthcare system is worth fighting for. He’ll have to decide if he’s going to spend the political capital to fight for the public option. I believe a public option would help-working class families—and I believe that despite the drivel coming from the hate-filled right-wingers.