United States: $5711

Denmark: $2743

France: $3048

Germany: $2983

Italy: $2314

Japan: $2249

United Kingdom: $2317

This can not be repeated enough.

You have nothing to fear. Obama isn't even talking about Single Payer. No one in either party is pushing for it, other than Conyers, Sanders and now Kucinich. They have almost no support in the centers of power. Private insurance companies and Big Pharma won't let it happen.

It SHOULD happen. But it won't. All of the hand wringing about "government takeovers" is nonsense and silly. Why? The government itself has been taken over -- by the Financial Sector, Wall Street, Private Insurance giants, Big Pharma, etc. Those are very powerful interests, and the only thing that could take them down would be the people. We'd have to organize, mobilize, unify and demand a better system.

Unfortunately, because all too many people have bought the lies of the rich and powerful, and do their dirty work for them -- including many posting on this board -- the powers that be have nothing to fear. It's like Pavlov's dog. Just say something is a government takeover, shout "socialism" enough, tell people the government will have control over their lives, and they'll believe it without thinking.

They WON'T think critically, carefully, logically about the issue. They'll go on pure reflex and emotion instead.

This has always puzzled me to no end. It's as if they really believe that corporate America is this fine and benevolent being, without bureaucracy, without any intentions of sticking it to people. There is a massive amount of cognitive dissonance in the mix, because the same people who acknowledge that the profit motive is in play, the same people who celebrate the freedom to make as much money as possible, just don't realize that private insurance companies, especially, have ZERO incentive to cover your bills. They make money when they DON'T cover your bills.

Personally, I would rather have one of those "government bureaucrats" decide whether or not I can get treatments covered than someone in the private sector. That person in the private sector isn't your advocate. He or she advocates for that business and your interests are in direct conflict. He or she is paid to maximize profits. And paying for your coverage hurts their profits.

Would the government worker be your advocate, exactly? Maybe. Maybe not. But we DO know they would have no incentive to deny your coverage. They get paid the same regardless. Your interests and their interests are not in conflict.

It's just bizarre that people think the government has a boot on their neck, when this government has actually helped create a capitalist paradise for the wealthy. The real boot is coming from the private sector.

The GOP always spends more than the Dems. At least from Reagan on. They spend more, they create bigger deficits and add more new debt.

They also portray anyone who attempts to cut defense spending as an enemy of America.

You conveniently left out the controversy over the F-22s. You also conveniently left out the fact that GOP leaders went ballistic when Obama raised defense spending 4% in the current budget. They said he was GUTTING the military. They shouted and whined and screamed that he was doing more than just cutting military spending, they said he was leaving us defenseless.

It was an INCREASE.

The GOP always pushes the hardest to keep the military-industrial complex fat and happy. I wish the Dems wouldn't join them as much as they do. But the impetus for expanding our military spending comes from the GOP. It's a point of "honor" for them. It's how they wave their little flags, talk tough, play toy soldiers, and pretend they're actually waging battle.

The last time the GOP balked at war was WWII. And I suspect a lot of that had to do with their hatred of FDR. A hatred that drove Dubya's grandfather, Prescott Bush, to mount a botched coup attempt.

The American Right Wing and its political arm, the GOP, is the only formidable enemy this nation has. We will never be a normal nation in which no person or family face financial ruin and homelessness when a serious illness hits as long as the GOP is allowed to terrorize us as an extension of corporate America. We are denied by the GOP and their allies in the Democratic party one of the most basic human rights:universal and free healthcare which the rest of the civilized world has taken for granted for generations. The GOP must be outlawed and declared an enemy of the state, just like Al Qaeda or any other terrorist organization attempting to attack the US. The existence of the GOP at it current form and the our nation are mutually exclusive.

Let me tell you why those 145 medical practices are now my clients. They have all agreed to accept a direct monthly payment from a group of people comprised of individuals, businesses, unions, and government agencies/programs.

There are 1150 more medical providers that have registered who are waiting to participate. All have signed contracts to provide their services for one amount.

The monthly payment from each individual, employee, union member, or person in the govt or program is $96.83 a month for all non-hospital medical intervention. A family would cost $193.66 no matter how many children.

The scope of the medical providers in the 145 practices is:

• family practice

• all specialties from allergy to urology

• all labs - both blood and tissue

• all imaging from nuclear to xray

• unlimited physical therapy

• mental health

• chiropractic

The medical providers have also contracted to waive all co-pays, deductibles, co-insurance, referrals, and there are no restrictions on previous conditions (why would a dr care about a previous condition?)

Now - this is all fact and can be re-duplicated in 3 to 4 months in most any place in the US. In 2007 the federal stats indicated that 86% of all medical interventions took place outside the hospital. If you carve out the over 65 crowd, the percentage rises to 99.4%

So who will make the decisions about my treatment, the insurance company, the government, or my doctor who I have hired for $96.83 a month? I opt for the doctor!

And THIS IS NOT INSURANCE - it is a contract that was reviewd by the insurance commissioner in my state and declared not to be insurance.

So I see another way.