Healthcare Debate 1993-1994

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the health policy debate in the United States in 1993-1994. It discusses the various reasons for the eventual failure of Clinton's health security plan and focuses on circumstance, interest group activities, the inherent complexity of the bill and partisan/ideological opposition. The paper then examines the implications of the failure of this plan for the American government.

Table of Contents:
Abstract
Public Opinion and the Health Care Reform Movement of the Early 90's
Reasons for Reform Failure
Interest Group Activities and Reasons for Advertising Success
Advertising
Circumstance
Increased Funding, High News Coverage, and Less Oversight
Grassroots and Lobbying
Broad Reform and its Inherent Problems
Political Partisanship/Ideological Opposition
Fault, Implications and Relations to the PAS

From the Paper:

"This leads us to one final question: is it a problem for the political structure of the United States that the public can be influenced by the opinions of elites? I would agree that while it is not ideal that the elites have the ability to influence public opinion to the degree that they do, especially by methods of repetition and intensity, it is also necessary that they have some ability to do so. The public typically is under-informed on almost every issue and even if they were presented with the facts, would not have the capabilities required to accurately determine the implications of those facts. They need the political elite there to interpret things and provide them with some sort of direction. Obviously, this results in severe problems when the elites' incentives and cause them to lie or mislead the public. Problems also arise from partisan opposition, such as was seen in the health policy debate, with far right wing Republicans using the public's wish for health care reform as a tool for political gain. Unfortunately, I do not see any clear method of restructuring the political system such that the motives for the elites would be specifically tailored so as to avoid such partisanship or to avoid them misleading the public."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Benet, Lorenzo; Stambler, Lyndon. April 11, 1994. Spin Doctors. People. pp. 105-107
• Broder, David. July 26, 1994. As Predicted, This Is One Heckuva Battle. Providence Journal. p. A9.
• Broder, David; Morin, Richard. March 7-13, 1994. Clinton's Health Plan: A Turn for the Worse. Washington Post National Weekly Edition. p. 15.
• Center for Public Integrity. 1994. Well-Heeled: Inside Lobbying for Health Care Reform. Washington, DC: Center for Public Integrity.
• Clymer, Adam. November 2, 1993. Hillary Clinton Accuses Insurers of Lying about Health Proposal. New York Times. p. A1.

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