The following text was a post made on the WSJ web site which illustrates my point: "... I’ve paid into medicare all my life, now I’m 55 and my husband was laid off in January, he is 57. We both have advanced engineering degrees, we are looking full time for jobs, there aren’t any. Our cobra costs 21,000/year. How long do you think we can afford that? We have never been sick and I don’t believe we’ve spent over $1500 for the past 5 years. We have two kids one dean’s list in college the other an A student in high school. What would you like us to do? Being unemployed and at our age we can’t afford private insurance. Maybe you know of a group plan we can buy into."

This woman only now knows the true cost of healthcare because they have to rely on COBRA. When they were employed, they probably didn't know, and additionally, didn't give it much thought since they figured the employer was paying. People have to be made to understand how much they're sacrificing with employer-based healthcare. The question is, how do we as a country communicate that FACT to employees? How do we shake them out of their naive complacency?

The real barrier to achieving a single payer system is getting people who receive employer sponsored healthcare to understand how excessive their premiums are. Most employees don't really know much is paid in premiums because they don't see how much their employer pays, they only know their portion of the premium. Consequently, they can't see how healthcare costs are diminishing their potential for increased wages or retirement contributions from their employer. Some way has to be found to communicate the excessive costs of healthcare to those who receive healthcare from their employers. Otherwise, it will be an uphill climb to achieve a single payer system.

THANK YOU, Senator. In a congress that is absolutely saturated with corruption, there are a few members strong enough to refuse to participate in it. And even fewer willing to call it out. Honor, courage, intellect, and empathy have to all be present before change for the better can come, and you are reason to hope.

When there are those in the senate and congress bought and paid for and controlled by the corporate "new world order" (that Bush Sr. bragged about), there will be corruption of unbelievable scope that affects all of us. Democrats are not immune to bribery and selling of their souls for a dollar. Please go to this site to see a Democrat who is for the new world order:
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=...

Please don't let this get under your skin!
The real road to helping fight evil:
Don't get implanted - Go to church on Saturday (the real Sabbath) and honor God! May God Bless you all and Bernie Sanders.

After seeing this my boyfriend, Harold, said to tell you, Bernie, that he would like to see you run for President. "I'd like to see someone who does something besides just talk."

Thank you, Bernie, for standing up and speaking out for those of us who do not want to keep supporting the private insurance industry. The idea of health care for profit is a waste of money and lives. We need single payer!

Thank you for all you do. Please work to expand the public option so ALL citizens can have access to this choice regardless of their employment status. As Congressman and like Federal Employees, you have choice -- give me the same opportunity to participate in a similar health exchange so I can have true choice. Give me portability so I don't have to change insurance companies when I change my employment status and let me take it into retirement or al least until I can get Medicare. I currently work for a large company and I have no choice in health insurance. My employer is interested in keeping costs down and because of that we have a very bad policy through United Healthcare. This company was taken to court in New York for how they were fleecing their customers in fraudulent out-of network schemes. The New York Attorney General case against United Healthcare discussed the game that insurance companies are playing by denyng, delaying and deceiving their customers. It takes me so much time to try to get fair reimbursement and I have to fight almost every bill that I submit which takes time away from the job that I am currenlty employed at. This is a drain on our economy - economists refer to this as "deadweight." The average citizen needs more protection against these huge Goliaths by also reforming current practices by these companies. The "usual, customary, and reasonable" known as UCRs need to be reformed so customers can be fairly reimbursed when they go out of network. Why do we even need out-of-network and in-network - -the whole thing is a scam. In one instance, the insurance company was only reimbursing me $20 out of a bill for a one hour session with a doctor that cost me $165.00 because I went out-of-network. I thought it was supposed to be the other way around where my co-pay is $20! They based it on the UCR rate but I have never been able to get them to explain how they derived this code. We need transparency in the system so when I access healthcare, I will know what I truly have to pay and not Russian Roulette by the insurance company in whatever they decide as a whim to reimburse me. I want to pay a "true" premium. Right now they lowball the premium and make it look good but in actuality I end up paying double or triple when they deny or hardly reimburse me anything on claims.

This company also insists that I mail in my claims and does not allow me to do it electronically in this day and age! I think they hope that they can slow down payment being saying that the claims got lost in the mail - then it takes me additional time and expense to send everything by certified mail. In this current health insurance system, one needs to be healthy, wealthy, or lucky.

Please also work to overturn the anti-trust act that insurers are now using to continue their fraudulent pricing practices and exorbitant profits. I don't mind paying for health insurance as long as I am getting the services that I am entitled to.

It is a shame that I have worked for 30 years and have a graduate degree and yet feel so much anxiety and that I am being ripped off by these insurance companies and wonder how I will survive if I live until 90 in dignity. I am 55 and I am scared of being forced out of a job, not qualifying for any of my 401-K savings or social security, and then having to worry about how I will be able to pay health care on top of this without becoming bankrupt. Who can afford COBRA without a job? If we can have fair affordable access to healthcare, this will take a load off of people's mind and also help to provide more new employment in the economy.

Dear Senator
I feel like I have been fighting an up hill battle with my own Democrat party to get a good insurance reform. I am also self employed and with the down turn in the housing industry [we have a residential remodel business] we have lost half of our income. We are paying our health insurance, but truthfully if either my husband or I were to become ill it would not pay for our care. I really never realized until now that even with insurance you are doomed to possible bankruptcy. We need better from our representives, I voted for change and I do not see it. Where is the heart in these Senators, Nelson,Landrieu,Baucus,Conrad and even Reid??? I am so frustrated!! I never considered that when the Democrats gained control in the White House, Senate and House they would not do what is right and moral for all Americans, I guess I was naive. Thank You for all you are doing and I also would like to see a single payer system.

"we may end up with legislation that will allow states to go forward with single-payer if they want to. "
and what if the states don't want to? I am confused. I thought we voters voted for real reform and insurance for everyone. If single payer is up to the states, how will anything change from what we have now? what about states that choose not to go forward with a single payer? This will determine where people live. If my state doesn't go forward with it... then I guess I would have to move. If only one state decides to go forward with it.. then there is gonna be alot of folks living in that state for sure.

I absolutely agree with your statement. We should establish a Single Payer System in the USA. All the proposals hide the fact that the Insurance Industry lobbyists are getting their way (in spite of their false claims of opposition to the legislative proposals being considered). But the problem goes beyond the Single Payer. We should look seriously into disallowing for-profit corporations to run our health care provider Hospitals, Clinics, Laboratories and Research Centers. There it is where our money gets diverted into the pockets of corporate tycoons giving them obscene profits. We can provide the same quality of service, or better, with non-profits under local control and monitored by the States. We need only the will to get it done.