Obama Pledges Health Care Reform By End of 2009

President Obama vowed to bring about health care reform by the end of this year at today's Health Care Summit at the White House.

Having experienced the health care systems in the United States, Canada and Britain I can say there is a lot left to be desired for our health care system. However, I am not sure if I would try to emulate Canada's Medicare or Britain's National Health Service in this country.

The biggest paradox of government run health care is that in an effort to increase access to health care one instead ends up decreasing access. There is little incentive in Canada or Britain to invest in new health technology. So when one is need of a surgical procedure or an MRI one is likely to spend a lengthy amount of time on a waiting list. Canadians who don't want to be on a waiting list often travel to the United States to obtain services they cannot access in Canada. Did you know there are more MRI machines in Boston than there are in all of Canada?

With that said I will make this prediction. If Obama is successful in reforming health care and manages to cover the 47 million Americans who don't have health insurance he will be re-elected. Even if the economy is still lagging if a critical mass of Americans have piece of mind that their health care has been taken care of they will reward Obama at the ballot box. It's that simple.