Sadly, history of health care in U.S. has been replayed

Gail Munford, Las Vegas

Friday, Jan. 22, 2010 | 2:02 a.m.

I think Sen. Ted Kennedy would be very sad to know his words all these years fell on deaf ears. He had good health insurance, but he busted his butt to provide the same for all Americans.

So when the Tea Party members are denied coverage by for-profit insurance companies, or cannot obtain insurance from them due to a pre-existing condition, or have to pay for all their medications due to the doughnut hole, I hope they remember the Massachusetts vote that brought the 41st Republican to the U.S. Senate.

“Let’s restart and write the health care bill in open sessions,” a phrase now being spouted by the Republicans, is actually code for “it will never get done” because the Republicans will never hurt the for-profit insurance companies that are among their major financial supporters.

I guess the Tea Party members just don’t get it. The reason the Democrats had to resort to political maneuvering to get health care bills through the House and Senate was the complete opposition by Republicans to the Obama administration.

Go back and read about the Clinton administration’s efforts to accomplish health care reform in 1994, and you will see the same pattern that emerged in 2009. Sad.