Hopefully, today will be an historic day in American history. This afternoon, the House of Representatives will vote on health care reform legislation that is years in the making, and decades overdue. Assuming it passes, which right now looks likely, this country’s health care system will not change as much as many of us had hoped – for starters, it will remain a “healthcare for profit” system – but nonetheless will be a major step forward both in terms of quality and quantity of coverage. When President Obama signs this bill into law, as soon as tonight, it will mark not the end, but the middle of a long journey. In years to come, we will continue the journey towards high-quality, affordable health care for all Americans, health care that can’t be taken away if you lose your job or are told you have a “pre-existing condition” or whatever.
For now, though, we’re talking about an important step forward, one that many people thought was impossible. Fortunately, it looks like we proved them wrong. We also proved that the power of “yes we can” is greater – albeit just barely – than the power of “no we can’t.”
Yes we can: improve health care for all Americans.
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