On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig suffered an uncontrollable blowout causing an explosion that killed 11 crewmen and ignited a fireball visible for 40 miles. The fire was inextinguishable but two days later the drilling rig sank, leaving the well gushing at the seabed and causing the largest oil spill in U.S. waters. Source: Wikipedia |
The only proposed solution to the health-care mess came from Dr. Jay Brock, a retired family physician. He advocated a single-payer health system—also known as Medicare for all—in which a single public agency organizes health-care financing, but the delivery of care remains largely in private hands. Everyone pays into the system through taxation and gets free coverage, he said, and the system becomes more efficient because companies with high-paid CEOs that are looking to make the biggest profits are removed from the equation.
Members of the audience applauded his proposal. Stafford County resident Harry Sisson agreed that, “We should get profits totally out of the medical system and put together an organization that will find out what is best and put it in place in this country.”
Fredericksburg resident Martha Sasser said many people attended the forum because they want to know what they, as citizens, can do to bring about change.
Brock encouraged them to phone and write their congressman “and go to a town-hall meeting, if they had any.” He said change could come about, if each person got five people involved. And so on, and so on.