It has always been about control. At least Rep. Dingle (D- Москва) is happy to admit this for us
Let me remind you this [Americans allegedly dying because of lack of universal health care] has been going on for years. We are bringing it to a halt. The harsh fact of the matter is when you're going to pass legislation that will cover 300 [million] American people in different ways it takes a long time to do the necessary administrative steps that have to be taken to put the legislation together to control the people.
Emphasis mine.
Verbal gaffe? Only insofar as it shows the end game. This is why I oppose Health Control so vehemently. Even if I was high on unicorn dander and believed it would be deficit neutral, that my quality of heath care would not suffer and the costs would come down (If you believe that, I have a Kenyan Birth Certificate you might be interested in buying), it still violates what it means to be a free citizen.
I am forced to purchase a product I may not want (and stuff your 'but you need car insurance' horseshit up where the unicorn dust doesn't shine, it's a losing argument) in order to redistribute my personal wealth. I am penalized by the government for not doing so. That is not the way freedom works.
I'm not quite as sanguine as Say Uncle on this matter. I do believe this is tyranny. It's been tyranny for a long time, we've just been boiled slowly enough to not notice it. This one act isn't any different than hundreds of others before it in any way except degree. But I agree with him on the fact that we cannot afford this both financially and liberty-wise.
Like Gun Control, it's never about safety or the betterment of society. It's always about control.