re:  "Power to choose is little more than a myth"

In her commentary on health insurance reform, Ms. Falkenberg seems to identify the deficiency of choice as a consequence of having what is to a large extent what she calls a "market-based health care system".  This isn't so — it isn't a free market limiting choice for individuals.  Rather, it is government prohibitions that limit competition, such as a federal prohibition against buying insurance across state lines.  Also, because the government refuses to grant the same tax exemption to individuals that it does to employers, individuals are tied to their employer's choice of plans and thus also tied to their jobs for health coverage.  Additionally, the government prevents "group plans", where organizations like, say, the Society of Professional Journalists, the American Diabetes Association, or maybe even the NAACP could pool its members together to supply health coverage, using their numbers to negotiate deals in a free, competitive market.
 
Remove those restrictions and other government mandates and prohibitions, and there would be a great increase in choices for individuals.  That's a much better approach than government edicts and a so-called "public option".

Sincerely,
Dave Smith
Houston, TX