But perhaps I missed it what Republican’s are proposing allowing interstate commerce of insurance?

As for tort reform, I’m not sure about that why should congress be allowed to decide how much pain and suffering a person has or how much in damages would truly punish a company. This is trying to put technocrats in positions of power as much as any public option in my opinion. I’m not for tort reform.

As for deregulation this is indeed a better step in the right direction and it is something that has to be done also the decoupling of health insurance from company benefits is critical too. Individuals need to be responsible for their own health care. Insurance companies need to focus on designing solutions for individuals not employers.

I understand that the Republican’s “Patient Choice Act of 2009″ removed corporate tax benefits for employees but other then that I didn’t read much about deregulation? Only tax cuts and further revisions to Medicare/Medicaid (i.e. more Republican spending). They had State Enterchange Partnerships, I think, but no deregulation of interstate commerce for health plans directly that I saw. And then there was even more spending for additional government health programs for diseases and vaccines something like $50 million I think… To me it read like more of the same status quo. More Medicare/Medicaid and more government spending with a little change by pushing health care insurance costs onto individuals. So that they can shoulder the hidden taxes in health care placed on the industry by Medicare and Medicaid.

I don’t purpose that those three ideas are bad for the nation (except perhaps tort reform). Deregulation and a focus on individual health insurance (vs. employer) are necessary of course in concert with the abolition of Medicare/caid. As long as Medicare/caid exists we are heading for an economic catastrophe. I’ll write more on that maybe this weekend in response to your post below. We’re going to default at some point and time if we keep up the pace even the CBO says Medicare is bankrupt by 2017. It’s just a matter of time.

What I’m saying is there is no debate. What are Republican’s proposing as a viable alternative? I agree there are American’s out their with good ideas. Deregulation and taxing benefits is a good idea because it forces individuals to be responsible for themselves. But other then the taxing idea I haven’t seen much else of benefit from the Republican’s just more spending and more of the Status quo. Medicare/caid are running up costs just as much as benefits being handled by employers. This is a hidden tax as well shifting the responsibility for health care from employers to individuals has merit but if you don’t address the rising cost of health care created from Medicare/caid then your only shifting the burden from corporations to individuals to carry the rising costs. The rising cost of health care is being driven by the elderly and they are or will be covered under Medicare.

Perhaps you could expand on how those three ideas are just as bad for the nation as the “public option”