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<img src="http://www.texasobserver.org/images/email/emailHeader_top.gif" /><br /> <a href="http://www.texasobserver.org"><img src="http://www.texasobserver.org/images/email/emailHeader_home.gif" /></a><a href="http://www.texasobserver.org/subscribe.php"><img src="http://www.texasobserver.org/images/email/emailHeader_subscribe.gif" /></a><a href="http://www.texasobserver.org/donate.php"><img src="http://www.texasobserver.org/images/email/emailHeader_donate.gif" /></a><img src="http://www.texasobserver.org/images/email/emailHeader_right.gif" /><br /> <h2>Heath Care Reform Would Benefit Texas</h2> <h4>by Dave Mann</h4> <div style="width:594px;"> <p>Must-read<a href="http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/1716040-p2.html#at" title="Star-Telegram story"> column</a> today by Michael Schnurman in the <em>Fort Worth Star-Telegram</em>. He details how and why national health care reform would benefit Texas.</p> <p>For one, when it comes to health insurance, the free market isn't all that free. In many states, there are too few insurance companies to spark true competition for customers.</p> <p>But here's the catch: Even in states with lots of competition (states like Texas), prices have still gone up. Schnurman <a href="http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/1716040.html#at" title="Star-Telegram story">writes</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p>Lots of competition means lots of choice and lots of benefits for consumers — at least that’s the theory.<br /><br />Except that in health insurance, the results have often been higher prices and more cherry-picking of the best customers.<br /><br />"We have lots of choices, but they aren’t affordable choices," said Anne Dunkelberg, associate director of the Center for Public Policy Priorities, an Austin research group that supports reform. "Having a lot of competitors isn’t sufficient in itself."</p> </blockquote> <p>Free market principles just don't graft well on to certain policy areas -- such as education. Same goes for health care. It's proven nearly impossible to create a pure health insurance market. With health care, more competition doesn't necessarily reduce …<br/><br/><a href='http://www.texasobserver.org/contrarian/comments/heath-care-reform-would-benefit-texas'>Read the entire article »</a> <br /><br /> http://www.texasobserver.org/contrarian/comments/heath-care-reform-would-benefit-texas </div> <br /><br /> <img src="http://www.texasobserver.org/images/email/email_footer.gif" />