Enough Talk; Act

The health care "summit" Thursday in Washington, D.C., didn't bridge the yawning gap between Democrats and Republicans over how best to reform the nation's health care system. That was evident to anyone who watched the spectacle at Blair House. There were sharp exchanges, and lines were clearly drawn.

Yet this was more than simple political theater.

For the most part, it was a substantive debate. There were moments of pandering — the TV cameras were rolling, and these are politicians, after all — but there were also surprisingly detailed policy discussions. One notable moment was when Vice President Joe Biden and Rep. Eric Cantor, a Virginia Republican, went toe to toe, respectfully, over insurance regulation. As Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) remarked, it's too bad the meeting didn't occur a year ago. Agreed.

But Democrats should not scrap that year of effort just because Republicans say they feel left out. Instead, they should make more of an effort to listen to Republican ideas and incorporate them into the existing plans. Two of these deserve special weight: capping medical malpractice awards and opening up the insurance market to the sale of policies across state lines.

So far, Democrats have paid only lip service to these proposals.

The goals remain: cover most Americans and slow down the rate of health care spending. President Barack Obama's plan, released Monday, builds on the reasonable proposal that passed the Senate last year. The president's plan would cover 31 million more Americans at a 10-year cost of about $950 billion.

There are some things the two parties can agree on: allowing parents to continue dependent coverage of their adult children through age 25 or 26, barring insurance companies from suddenly revoking coverage, barring insurers from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions, ending lifetime caps on benefits. If it takes an incremental process to achieve reforms like these, so be it. But there is no need yet to scrap bills that lawmakers took a year to produce.

If the "summit" Thursday illustrated anything, it's that lawmakers of both parties, despite the sharp exchanges, are still capable of having a civilized debate over a contentious issue. Now, they need to show that they can do more than talk. Now, they need to act in the best interests of the American people.

REPRINTED FROM THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL.

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