Flight delays are like hangovers. They fade over time, until the next sorry encounter. But filthy planes? That's borderline criminal.

Not long ago, a traveler with infectious tuberculosis made headlines when he jetted internationally. That seemed a dangerous oddity, but planes start looking like full-time germ incubators when you read a Wall Street Journal story about how and how frequently jets are cleaned.

The question's not that difficult, and the answer is simple. Simply painful.

At some presidential or gubernatorial debate this needs to be asked: "If you've got a plan to provide health insurance coverage to most everybody, what's your plan to ensure there are enough doctors and hospital beds to treat most everybody?"

Unless I've been watching too many "Got milk?" commercials, the only possible answer is -- we can ensure coverage, but we can't guarantee access to care.