More Health Care Battles

This time in the Pentagon budget. Paying for the health care of current and former soldiers costs the Pentagon more than $50 billion a year, nearly 10 percent of the defense budget. Secretary Gates is fighting to shift more of the cost to retirees by raising their premiums, but veterans groups say health care for life is part of the deal we promised our volunteer soldiers to get them to fight for us.

And fights like are only going to get more frequent and worse until we really have a national system and face up the costs of caring for our health.