Soundbytes

Above: President Obama reading letters in the Oval Office regarding HealthCare. From www.whitehouse.gov, August 4, 2009.

AN AVERAGE TV NEWS BYTE IS
120 SECONDS.

Usually, I'm a fan of the quote, Time is of the Essence. However, with the recent news on health care, I see rushing the issue could be bad... very bad.

I remember being told that the average soundbyte on the news is only about 2 minutes long (after watching today's midday news, I believe it is even shorter). And, with all the news stirring about health care reform, how much can the American people be enlightened with the pros and the cons of the current bill that's being transferred into congress. I'll be honest, with the free time that's been given to me post-examination, I've been digging left and right, trying to find the core of what the bill is and why is there such a rush.

I've started reading up articles online from the New England Journal of Medicine, the New York Times, various websites stating the democratic and republican points of view upon the issue, and even rewatching President Obama's hall conference had on ABC a few weeks ago. To be truthfully honest, it seems that not everyone is addressing the same points, although there might be some overlap, and I find it rather irritating when I can't answer the question, What did the other side think?

I believe that health care is such a complex problem, that there's potential that fixing one thing might lead to exasterbating other problems that might not have been thought of. But something needs to be done.

I respect the president's goals with health care and the viewpoints too, but if I'm a medical student who's been trying to follow this with simply newsbytes, even with question and answer sessions, and now has gone to lengths to start digging for information, YET still has NO idea what the overall costs and benefits of this legislation is, what is it for millions of other Americans who are getting concerned, with only time to get their info through soundbytes? I want to make sure I'm eduated on this issue too, and I hope that my representatives and senators are making educated decisions too.

Healthcare policy is critical for everyone's lifestyle, their budgets, and of course, our economy.

Hopefully with this August recess, I can do that, but I hope that the Government slows down. However, the president is right: we need a deadline (however, realistic) or nothing will get done.

But for now, the digging continues. Soundbytes aren't enough.