UPDATE: The new Republican-led U.S. Congress is attacking the democratically passed Healthcare Reform bill. Oddly, some of the reasons cited for repealing the law are those items that Republican's forced into the law, including the mandate for individuals to purchase insurance. 

Some of the anti-whatever-the-Democrats-propose effort may be waning however; many of the Republicans who initially opted out of the Congressional healthcare plans on ideological grounds, have since then entered the world of reality that most Americans live under -- the middle-class place of not being poor-enough, young-enough, or old-enough for other federal Medicaid or Medicare insurance, but also not being fortunate enough to work for a unionized employer or big company that pays benefits. 
https://www.facebook.com/notes/crooks-and-liars/gop-freshmen-discover-health-care-hell/10150136162170540

Update: 

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        Why Single-Payer? The biggest cost-savings and benefit to local residents would be to dramatically reduce the paperwork involved in getting medical services paid. In a single-payer system, medical providers like your local doctors office or the hospital only need to deal with a single set of forms and codes for all their patients. You would still be able to choose your insurance company and your doctor within that insurer's limits. You would get the care your doctor believes you need rather than what the insurer wants to pay. Physicians for a National Healthcare Program and InformationClearinghouse.

        Why a Public Option? Currently, private insurance insurance companies have a stranglehold on the healthcare system. They are able to force doctors and hospitals to accept very low reimbursements while forcing citizens to pay very high rates. A public option will mean people have an additional choice of insurance -- a nationwide plan with a broad network of providers. This public insurance option will operate alongside private insurance companies, injecting competition into the market to drive quality up and costs down. It's not popular with high-paid insurance executives (See Healthcare for America Now letter.pdf on why a public option is important to stop private anti-trust violations & other issues).

        End Denial of Coverage for Pre-Existing Conditions. Too often, people are prevented from taking new jobs or denied medical services because their medical condition existed prior to enrolling in a new insurance plan. Removing this profit-maximizing tool of the insurance industry executives is a top-priority. Families need to know they can get treatment regardless of when their condition was first identified. Removing this insurance industry invention encourages prevention and early intervention and thus lowers total costs. Medical personnel and healthcare administrators want this greedy insurance industry tactic stopped because it costs taxpayers more money in the long-run. (See examples & sign petition)

        Add cost-saving incentives. Did you know that hospitals can dramatically reduce the number of expensive, emergency asthma admissions in part by making follow-up calls after patients go home, or giving low-income patients a cheap vacuum cleaner, or finding a cheaper medicine?  The problem is, by doing so, some hospitals have been hurt because over 80% of their income was from those emergency asthma admissions. Did you know that American doctors and hospitals spend much more on childbirth procedures than Great Britain or France or Germany or Switzerland, but we have higher rates of infection and child mortality? Americans would get better care if providers were encouraged to use best medical practices rather than best lawsuit protections. They would provide cheaper medical care if providers were not trying to pay off rarely used equipment. They would provide the same care for less if drug companies were not pushing doctors to use new drugs instead of equally effective, but lower cost alternatives.

        Keeping People Healthy, Alive & Working. Many of us locally have seen the devastation of friends and families not getting needed medical services because they cannot afford it. They end up losing their jobs. Their children end up with serious and preventable physical disabilities that will prevent them from getting jobs as adults. This doesn't even take into account the emotional toll on children who have missing teeth, preventable loss of vision, or parent dying. Medicaid does provide limited services are available for the very most poor, but its benefits continue to be cut. We believe citizens deserve better. We want every American to have the best chance at a productive life.

        Effect on Jobs. Rep. Mike Rogers has went on record saying the currently written bill is a job killer. Truly, if he doesn't protect his top two campaign contributors (the insurance and pharmaceutical industries), he may not be able to afford to win his next government-paid job.  Experts in the healthcare industry believe that healthier citizens will improve our country's productivity and allow companies to focus on new products and services rather than on paying for sick employees. Michigan may stand the most to gain because of its reliance on the motor industry and its uncompetitive healthcare costs. Healthcare cannot be outsourced like manufacturing and information technology. Most serious researchers say there will only be a small effect on jobs http://www.factcheck.org/2009/11/health-care-and-the-economy/. Getting medical debt under control is also key to keeping families out of bankruptcy and solving part of our nation's housing crisis (links to research) (medical bills are commonly a source of 60% of a family's credit card debt). Democrats need to contact their state representatives to ensure that small business owners benefit from a new healthcare system and are not unduly penalized. 

        Effect on Elderly. There is a lot of money being put up for television advertisements that mislead the elderly taxpayers and their families. Everyone working on healthcare reform is concerned about improving medical coverage. The current system does not always support seniors receiving medical services at home and can leave some middle-class seniors with too little coverage. In response to doctors, nurses, families, and organizations representing the elderly such as AARP, provisions have been placed in each version of the House and Senate bills to retain the best parts of Medicare coverage, support to the leanest areas of Medicare coverage, protect the rights of seniors, encourage prevention and long-term healthcare planning and to ensure doctors follow seniors' wishes on end-of-life care.

        The Clinton County Dems. We agree with efforts to improve our nation's healthcare funding and delivery of service. Many in power today benefit from the current system (see big insurance, big pharma and Mike Rogers). However, the vast majority of taxpayers would be better served by a system that prevents and quickly treats major medical problems. Currently, foreign companies have their healthcare subsidized by their governments. U.S. companies must pay medical bills out of pocket or in the case of some big employers like Walmart, pass on the cost of employee medical care to taxpayer funded Medicaid (walmartwatch.com/). Even the Republican Governor of California knows we need healthcare reform to reduce costs (http://www.fixourhealthcare.ca.gov/index.php/facts/more/6771/)

        See bill as of Nov 2009 in it's entirety.