“Valid arguments”??? As a primary care grunt, I’ve never noted any insco to be hamstrung by a lack of validity…or even logic.

As for cynicism, I offer the sentiment of Robert the Bruce as spoken to his father, Robert de Brus, in “Braveheart”: “I don’t want to lose heart; I want to believe…” I doubt any pioneer ever championed any cause or blazed any new trail with anything less than some serious pie-in-the-sky-ness!

No, we can’t expect the insurance companies to do anything short of what’s best for themselves and their stockholders in the next quarter. But given their massive, published profits over the last year or two, I don’t find many valid arguments against additional requirements, do you?

I can’t disagree with your second point, but – and I don’t say this to be rude – the tooth fairy is a sure better story than your parents slipping you a quarter (or whatever the going rate is now). How can you possibly see your vision happening? Maybe I’m too cynical, I just see those same lobbyists steering any such reforms away from the best answers for all.

My apologies for not actually saying anything with this note. Beware the Dogfish Head.

I’m still thinking an Obama-esque, grass roots, small project, small community, disruptive innovation-ish, replicable & scalable reform for ALL involved parties, together and at once, will refocus the true intention of healthcare info integration. (And, as alluded to, maybe with a few of those Obama bucks to actually end up with end-users, not middlemen and CEOs.)

If that were true, then so many of my clients wouldn’t be reporting post-Wall Street meltdown delays and policy changes