Protesters at health care reform meeting at Bernard Middle School in Mehlville, MO

Yesterday, while waiting for my hair appointment, I decided to do a bit of window shopping, and walked over to one of my favorite stores. Yes, it was a box store. Guilty as charged, but they had those plastic popsickle makers I remember from my youth.

As I entered the store I found nearly all of the staff assembled near the front registers. I distinctly heard one of the male associates say, "Maybe we shouldn't even try to discuss health care." A female employee saw me, and greeted me with, "How are you today?" "Fine," I replied, "until I heard the word health care." Embarrassed smiles crossed a few faces, but they relaxed when I laughed and said hello.

"No," I continued. "We should all keep discussing health care. It is very important. We just need to do so without treating one another disrespectfully." Suddenly, I found myself answering question after question about health care. Only later did it occur to me that someone had recognized me from my little jaunt on tv. One young woman approached me as I ogled the vast array of stainless toiletry items and thanked me. Apparently the discussion had grown a bit heated.

A question that popped up several times, was one that I have struggled with for the past several weeks. Not because I don't suspect I know the answer, but because putting that suspicion into words that make sense to the average person is so very difficult.

Talking to this group of people helped me find a few more words, a few phrases that helped me and them make a bit more sense of the angry reaction of groups of people across America in town halls and other public meetings.

First, economically, the profits generated by private, for profit, health insurance companies account for a sizable percentage of many investment portfolios. Many senior citizens, whose retirement earnings have already been impacted by the current economic crisis, see another cut to their retirement earnings as a definite cause for worry. Should people opt out of their current insurance policies in favor of a public option, their dividends will most likely be impacted by the loss in profits. I believe those losses will be minimal, and will be offser by the security of knowing you will not face medically related bankruptcy, but I will discuss that further in another post.

During my lifetime, I have seen and experienced the way reasonable fears lockrf down in our subconscious can, if not dealt with, balloon into larger, more outrageous concerns and worries. I sadly admit that I have gone off on rants against a loved one, employer or friend for some offense that seemed improbable all because I couldn't express my feelings regarding another issue. If I was lucky, the recipient of my ire treated me with patience, and we were able to work through my fears to reach a mutual solution.

Is it possible the dynamics of this misplaced aggression have found their way into the debate over health care reform?

Older Americans seem to make up the bulk of those who come out to protest health care reform. Perhaps beneath the apparently inexplicable fears of government sponsored euthanasia and the imminent rise of socialist rationing of medical care, is a more understandable fear that has become deeply entrenched in their psyche: a fear that they have difficulty expressing because, in our culture, we believe that good Americans do not get into financial predicaments, and we certainly do not discuss such things with strangers. Charity is for poor people, not for the middle class, even when they are perched precariously on the brink of financial ruin.

Since the early two thousands, the average investment portfolio has peaked and plunged in value with frightening regularity. Not a promising state of affairs for someone who seeks to retire in five or so years. Because of losses suffered in the stock market, many Americans have put off retirement. News agencies every where have, at some point in recent years, hosted news stories covering the plight of the struggling retiree. Then around 2003, the housing market surged, and it seemed investment/retirement portfolios might rebound.

Unfortunately, the housing bubble burst, and once again stocks plunged. Worse still, the decision by many investors to move their money from high risk, high earning, investment funds to safer, lower risk retirement friendly funds, served to further slow the economy. Those hoping to retire at this point, were forced yet again to reevaluate their plans for the future. They dutifully, and quietly hunkered down, cut expenses and prepared for some rough times.

So here sit our now not so hopeful retirees and retiree want-to-bes. They spent a lifetime working hard, having kids, paying their dues and living the dream for better or worse only to face the reality of work after sixty.

Even as the attitudes of this group have gone through a major makeover, so also has the makeup of the investment/retirement portfolios they cling to with continued hopes of retirement. Since the collapse of the housing market, and the plugging up of the credit market, investment firms have been working to reorganize the structure of their investments. Non essential, poorly performing options were heaved in favor of more traditional, dependable ones.

So where does health insurance, and health care fit into this equation? They play a vital role in the new strategies, so vital in fact that the big investors have come out swinging in defense of what they perceive to be major underpinnings of their assets and earning potentials.

Let me pause to say, I am in no way an expert on the subject of capital investment, but I am quite competent to understand a financial firms investment report, and the message embedded within them is simple. The profits from health insurance and health care are sizable enough to compel investors to fight for their continued existence and to encourage them to maintain current profit margins. They must do this if they are to continue to provide the dividends that their clients have come to expect. Many of those clients may very well have elected to take up the cause, and head to the the town hall to do battle with government.

The Hartford Mutual Fund reported the following in its most recent semi-annual report for 2009. Here are the figures for medical and health insurance from the table on Diversification by Industry: Percentage of Assets of of April 30, 2009 (Hartford Mutual Funds Semi Annual Report 2009)

Health Care and Equipment Services 5.7%
Insurance 6.2%
Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology and 9.1%
Life Sciences

Only a few assets ranked higher in percentage of assets that comprise the earnings of the fund:

Energy 9.5%
Capital Goods 7.1%
Software and Services 9.4%

Artio Global reported the following in percentage of assets in their recent semi annual report (Artio Global Investors: Semi Annual Report April 30, 2009):

US Artio
U.S. Microcap Fund
Healthcare 16.3%

*This number most likely includes all the above groups assets that have been separated out in the Hartford report.

The point to be made here is that any losses to profits related to health care reform could very well mean losses to investors. So it isn't hard to imagine how those Americans who depend on investment/retirement income might come out swinging in defense. And it is not hard to imagine certain unscrupulous elements of the health care and investment industry capilizing on those fears. Those who would would manipulate their worried clients have found clever ways to redirect the legitimate fears into other outlets. They do this because they know the White House and Progressive Democrats do indeed have answers and solutions to the legitimate fears. It therefore becomes necessary to fan the fears of clients to such an extent that reason is overcome by paranoia all in an effort to direct the discussion away from the original issue.

To allay their fears, I recommend we ask our law makers and policy enforcers the following questions:

1. If Americans opt of out coverage under private, for profit health insurance, how will this impact my retirement earnings? An answer to this question might also ease the fears of small to medium sized businesses who augment profits with investment income (practice which I believe ultimately can harm a business if income from investments becomes a crutch).

2. How will negotiations with big Pharm, Medical Equipment and Biotechnology impact the earnings of those industries, and can I expect those losses to impact my retirement income from investments related to them?

When entering into any discussion one must first define the topic of the discussion, then those points upon which the participants disagree and agree. I hope that this last posts helps to clarify what I hope are some of the more deeply felt concerns of our pre-retirement and retirement community. If anyone chooses to take on this discussion, I caution you to be ready to absorb the anger that may likely be directed at you. If you can remained calm and composed, and approach the conversation with an attitude of non confrontation, it is possible to move past this initial anger and begin a true conversation. These conversation are extremely rewarding.

Having made this point, I would like to clarify that while I have the utmost respect for the concerns of those individuals who are approaching or are of retirement age, I have far less patience with the younger group comprised of people in their early to mid forties upward who posses the capability to work until the established age of retirement. I am rather perplexed by the notion that these individuals have the right to be angry at the government because the recent economic downturn has forced them to give up early retirement. They seem to operate under the all to common belief that a lifetime of investing guarantees one the right to a life of ease and freedom from worry. Investing is risky business. A good investment firm will take great pains to emphasize and explain the risks. Heck, Suzi Orman will be happy to explain the risks via several public mediums. So it is improbable that anyone not living in a cave (no dig at our neanderthal brothers and sisters) would be unaware of the downside to dabbling in the stock market.

Why do I think that a fear of further loss of income might be behind the less reasonable fears loudly voiced in town halls across America? How could this former fear be lesser than the latter fears? We are Americans, and older Americans especially were taught to hunker down and keep ones financial worries to oneself. Americans make do. We don't like to accept charity. With this in mind, it is conceivable that it would be easier for a person laboring under the burden of such concerns to find it easier to redirect their worries and attack parts of health care reform that seem impossible for some of us to understand.

The ability to fan the flames of fear into righteous anger is a well known and much discussed tactic of the conservative right. It pains me to watch these pitiless arbitrators of chaos take advantage of people who have genuine concerns, and who, under better circumstances would be able to voice those concerns in a way that would bring about solutions to the problem of health care reform. So, while I know that many of the sign waivers and slogan shouters may well be the hired hands of the health care industry, I am mindful that there may well be those who struggle to find answers in the face of what for them may be near crippling fear. For them, I labor to find the truth.