I know this post will make no difference whatsoever, but I just have to get my opinion out there. As much as I think that health care reform is necessary, no bill may be better than any bill. And the more I hear about what the current proposal contains (yes, I haven’t read the bill myself, and neither has anyone except probably 10-15 people), the more I think we’re going to end up with the “any bill” outcome.

If the US passes a bill that worsens the health care system, it’s going to be really hard to undo. First, who’s going to want to revisit something that just passed? We have unemployment, global warming, the financial sector, Guantanamo, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, China, and a million other things to worry about. Unless the reform has DRASTIC negative effects, Congress will likely not address health care again for a while.

Even if the bill creates disastrous consequences which prompt re-regulation, any changes will likely resemble a “kludge“, a quick fix which may work for a while but makes the entire system more inefficient in the long run.

It is important to get this right. And right now it seems that we’re mostly getting it wrong.