HEALTHCARE UPDATE….Here’s the latest on America’s (very) rapidly declining healthcare infrastructure. A new survey from the Commonwealth Fund reports that middle and high income workers aren’t doing too badly ? though they’re doing worse than they were five years ago ? but that workers with incomes less than $35,000 are in free fall. Five years ago 17% of moderate income workers were uninsured; today that figure has skyrocketed to 28%. And a whopping 41% were without health coverage at some point during the year.

Providing healthcare for the poor and working class isn’t the only reason to support a sensible national healthcare plan. Cost, efficiency, peace of mind, and increased choice are equally important drivers. But when nearly half of even those who are solidly in the working class don’t have medical coverage during some or all of each year, we’re in trouble.

Needless to say, George Bush’s beloved “ownership society” isn’t the solution. It’s the problem. There’s no way to fix our dysfunctional healthcare system until we stop forcing corporations to be healthcare providers in addition to whatever their actual line of business is. As these figures show, they don’t want to be in the healthcare business, and more and more of them are bailing out. It’s time to face reality on this.