For former Sen. Tom Daschle, who served as majority leader and is an expert on health care policy, the number one serves as a reminder of how far the United States has to go in its quest to reform the health care system.
“We’re the No. 1 country in terms of (health care) costs and 37th in outcome,” Daschle said in a speech Tuesday evening in Pugh Hall. “We need to rise to the challenge.”
Daschle spoke to a crowd of 250 and outlined the issues of the health care debate.
He discussed topics including the extent of the government’s role in health care reform and the costs associated with reform.
Daschle labeled the differing viewpoints in the health care debate as the “noise of democracy” and said both sides share blame in the failure to achieve a true bipartisan approach to health reform.
Although health care legislation, which passed through the House and Senate, appears to be on the verge of becoming law, Daschle was quick to point out there is still much work to be done.
“We’re on the 30-yard line with 70 yards to go,” he said.
If the bill fails to become law, Daschle said it would take at least a decade before Congress addresses the issue of health reform again.
He said the issue is something every American should be concerned about.
“I believe American politicians respond better when there’s a crisis,” he said. “I believe everyone is trying to do the right thing.”
Bill Frist, a former Republican senator from Tennessee and a former senate majority leader, planned to speak alongside Daschle to offer a conservative perspective on the health care debate. However, Frist, a heart and lung transplant surgeon, decided to travel to Haiti to help with disaster relief efforts.
Instead, Rob Lorei, the news director of WMNF in Tampa, interviewed Daschle, asking questions from both sides of the political spectrum.
Rafael Yaniz, a political science junior who submitted a question to the former senator, said he was impressed by how Daschle conducted himself throughout the session.
Yaniz, who admits that he doesn’t line up exactly with Daschle, admired how he treated the subject matter seriously without acting like a pundit.
