Ok, here’s an argument I am sick to damn death of hearing: Sure, HCR may have been a mess with huge bailouts and bribes given to the mass-murdering insurance companies, Big Pharma, Hospital chains and the like, but hey, it’s serious progress, because it makes healthcare a ‘right’ in America for the first time.

Christ people. Health care is now a right. I know, I know. We didn’t get to punish insurance companies and tell off the Republicans while we did it. I give up.

Wrong. Astoundingly, absolutely, ridiculously stupid and wrong.

Under the new HCR scheme, you don’t have a ‘right’ to healthcare. You don’t even have a ‘right’ to health insurance. What you have is a mandate to PURCHASE or otherwise acquire insurance, and maybe, if you’re poor enough, the government will pick it up for you or put you on Medicaid instead. Otherwise you’ll get inadequate subsidies, and if you still can’t pay, the Feds will have the IRS take a fine out of your tax return.

See the difference? I know it’s subtle. /snark

A right is something that is guaranteed to you, that your fellow citizens have to respect and your government is obligated to protect. In no way, under no conceivable logic, does this healthcare bill give you a ‘right’ to health care. At best, it protects you from being completely denied for insurance under certain criteria. That’s ok; the insurance companies can just raise the premiums to whatever they want with no meaningful oversight on rates, and if you don’t like it, tough luck. If you can’t afford the copays after the sky high premiums? Tough luck. If they deny your care after you pay their extortionate rates? You can appeal, and appeal, and appeal, and if you’re still alive when and if they get overturned, you might get your care.

Good luck with that.