The Obama administration and socialists in Congress believe they can get away with another major step toward nationalizing America’s health care.

President Obama is pressing Congress to send him a comprehensive health care bill by October and is urging initial House and Senate passage prior to the August recess.  [See “Obama Urges Quick Action on Insurance” — NY Times, June 3, 2009]

In addition, trial balloons are being floated for making health care insurance mandatory for everyone — an outrageous power grab.  [See “Obama Open to a Mandate on Health Insurance”  — NY Times, June 4, 2009]

When the precise details of the plan are revealed there will likely be little time left to object, so the time to give direction to Congress is now.

Freedom First Society urges members and friends to contact Congress and voice their opposition to any expansion of government’s involvement with our nation’s health care.

General principles for effective letter writing and a link to congressional contact information can be found here.

In particular, an effective letter here needs to state clearly that the writer opposes any expansion of government’s involvement with our nation’s health care. The writer should then provide one or two reasons to support that position.

We list here several ideas for supporting points that may spark some thoughts of your own. It is better to use some of your own language so that your congressman and senators recognize that your letter expresses your own firm convictions.   At most offer only a couple of supporting points:

• Many Americans undoubted have a problem obtaining quality health care at an affordable cost. But it is because government is already too heavily involved in the system. Government involvement should be rolled back, not expanded.

• Doctors should be accountable to their patients not to federal bureaucrats.

• The Constitution does not authorize any federal involvement in health care and for good reason. Taking care of our medical needs is not why the Founders proposed a strictly limited federal government.

• Mandatory health insurance smacks of big brother.   President Obama wrote: “If we do end up with a system where people are responsible for their own insurance …” His clever wording tries to disguise a federal power grab. We already have a system where people are responsible for their health care. It’s called freedom.

• Americans should not be beholden to the federal government for access to health care nor should our doctors be forced to conform their treatments to bureaucratic standards.

• Let’s see how government does with managing GM before we entrust it with out vital health care system.

• More federal involvement will mean less quality and greater costs.   We do not need the federal government to manage our doctors and authorize treatments.

• Nations with universal government-sponsored health care necessarily offer poor service. America does not need overworked, underpaid doctors dispensing aspirin and long waiting lines for important medical procedures.

• Paying for routine health care expenses is not a proper role for insurance, which inevitably adds to the cost.

• The only real reform of the health-care business is to get the federal government out.

Also, constituent letters to Congress should end with a request or a firm statement as to what is expected. Example:

Do not compromise on this federal power grab. The lesser of two evils is still evil. I insist you vote no on any measure that would increase the federal government’s unconstitutional involvement in our nation’s health care.