Patricia Schroeder: “it is summertime. When most Americans hear ``Everybody in the pool,'' they think it is a great cry to join in the fun.…”

“it is summertime. When most Americans hear ``Everybody in the pool,'' they think it is a great cry to join in the fun. But we have been hearing pleas for health care reform from the other side of the aisle, and they are absolutely right. We desperately need many of the provisions in that health care reform. What they forget to tell us is that the basic premise of a good insurance program is everybody stays in the pool, because we can only keep premiums down if everybody stays in the pool. The other side forgets to tell us that they are only going to give us those reforms if they are allowed to drop a ladder in the pool. The name of that ladder is MSA. Meet MSA. Think MSA. It means ladder. It means if you are rich, you can get out of the pool. If you are healthy, you get out of the pool. Who do we leave in the pool? We are going to have a whole lot of reforms that are needed, but we are going to have premiums so high we will not be able to get there. I think it is very important to have both sides of this issue, and ``Everybody in the pool'' better have a real meaning on this one.”