Health Care Reform?

E.J. Dionne of the WaPo is optimistic about the passage of health care reform this year that will give universal access to insurance.

I'm not sure about the politics of it. Nor am I sure that it will work in a cost-efficient way that this nation can afford. One of my fears is that the costs of universal coverage the way we will do it, with private insurers and without making the tough choices regarding drug costs and end of life care may make it simply too costly for our weakening economy. If that were the case, I don't know what would happen to the whole system.

Admitting the shortfalls of the single-payer systems in most other industrialized countries, they do a better job of controlling costs that keep down the overall drag on the economy. But we seem to think we can have it all here in America: big military, cheap energy, big cars, the most expensive health care, big houses, and low taxes.

Hmmm. I don't think so.