“I’ve never seen such dirty politics – it’s beyond the pale” said Sylvia Hampton as she described the Republican battle at the federal level to stop health reform. At the state level, Dr. Paul Friedman asked whether “we have the will” to adopt a single-payer system for California. “It will take a grass roots movement,” he added. “Everyone will have to want it.”

Hampton, who is the League of Women Voters health care director, and Friedman, a professor of radiology at UCSD, did their best to summarize the current status of health reform at the federal and the state level. Both emphasized the challenges to achieving reforms, but both also held out hope that it can happen.

NEW: See video of Hampton and Friedman after the jump.

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Friedman predicted the easiest way to implement single-payer health care would be to gradually lower the qualification age for the existing Medicare program. He said the current state legislation, SB 840, establishes a set of commissions to enable the program, depending on the types of people appointed. Once established, a single-payer program could negotiate drug costs and influence more physician to go into general practice, an area that is now under served.

There will still be a place for private insurance, Friedman said, pointing to European nations where there are various levels of private involvement in government-run systems. (See a report from the World Health Organization for details.)  However, he added, “insurance companies will shrink” as the system adjusts and “a lot of people working in hospitals will lose their jobs pushing papers.”

It will be important, Friedman predicted, that physicians not object to the single-payer system, and “that’s going to be tricky.” He concludes that physicians may not be able to see exactly how changes will affect them as legislation is created and passed. They may have to wait for “the fine-tuning” as regulators work out the details that will determine how much money doctors can make and how.

Hampton called for a “shout out” to Anthem-Blue Cross of California, which recently announced large fee increases for customers. “That’s probably the best thing that could have happened and at just the right time,” she cheered, occurring just prior to the national health reform meeting between President Obama and the Republicans.

She reviewed the sad history of how powerful corporations have delayed or destroyed reform legislation in the Clinton administration, the Gray Davis administration in Sacramento, and during the recent drive in Washington. “Why not open Medicare to all?” she asked. “Because somebody’s ox will get gored” and insurance, drug and health care corporations will lose profits.

Hampton also recommended the book “The healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper and Fairer Health Care” by T. R. Reid, a former correspondent for The Washington Post. The book is available from the Escondido Public Library, or from Amazon.com.

She reminded the audience that “the Governor of California is crucial. (Meg Whitman) cannot become governor or we’re done – DONE!” she emphasized, adding that Whitman is “scaring the holy heck out of everybody.”

Hampton urged hard work to keep Brian Bilbray from returning to Congress, and bringing in as many new liberals to the cause as possible. “Make sure you’ve got those Blues fired up” she said.