Ben Nelson, the Cautious Reformer

So Ben Nelson has drafted a letter and rounded up some buddies who have decided to slam the brakes on healthcare reform.

Never mind that Nelson has admitted his demands are incompatible, thus calling into question how serious he is about the prospect of supporting anything. There are real, human costs to delaying reform so that Ben and friends can go on vacation. From Jay Rosenbaum at Health Care for America NOW:

Just to put a fine point on it, over three weeks in America:

* 143,250 people will lose their health insurance coverage [pdf]
* 53,507 people will file for bankruptcy because they can’t pay their medical bills
* 1,265 people will die [pdf] because they lack coverage

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