fought just this in Kansas when she was insurance commissioner (how she got elected governor).  Does she offer any policy statements?  Any guidance?  If she is looking for a national stage (one could expect that after taking the Democratic response this week), she should be at the forefront of this.

And may I add, you're a darn good leader. All of us reading this diary, we are the leadership. Like the bumper sticker says, where the people lead, the leaders will follow.

This is a big year for us (understatement). It's a national election, and the economy is heading towards a depression. The definition of "affordable" is going to be coming up at a lot of dinner tables all around this country.

This is the year for us to make a difference.

Actually it usually doesn't make a difference if you are in a profit or non-profit institution.

The non-profits take the money they would pay in dividends to stockholders and give it to their executives instead.  They also take advantage of their tax breaks to run the other nearby hospitals out of business.  To meet the designation of non-profit they just offer community services which can be a high-priced Wellness Center or free screenings or lectures paid for by drug and medical equipment companies.  Many say they can't meet their requirements for charity care because they purposely locate themselves in wealthy neighborhoods.

Meanwhile, the old non-profits in the heart of urban areas while providing needed care drive many people to bankruptcy because they are so desperate for money they refuse to offer payment plans and are the most aggressive in filing lawsuits to get full payment.

http://wherethemoneygoes.com/

http://www.thehealthcareblog.com/...