Once Upon A Time...

Once upon a time…in a perfect world each American receives equal health care. Yes, and we would all have no taxes, free food, a world free of disease. Unfortunately we don’t live in a perfect world, and a universal health care plan would not help us get any closer to it.
Basics on Universal Health Care:A universal health care is a health care system in which all residents of a geographical or political entity have their health care paid for by the government, regardless of medical condition. (provided by Wikipedia.com)
Funding- The system the United States would adopt would be a “single payer” described as a type of system in which a single entity, typically a government-run organizations, acts as the administrator or “payer” to collect all health care fees, and pay out all health care costs. Advocates of UHC say that a “single payer” system saves money that could be directly used for health care by eliminating waste.
Countries that have it employed-Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Cuba, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Isreal, Netherlands, New Zeland, Norway, Portugal, Seychelles, South Africa, Spain, Sweeden, Taiwan, United Kingdom. (By 2007 Massachusetts, will have universal heath care system for it’s citizens)
Now Universal Health Care in theory seems like a “great” idea. Yes, so does communism. Both are in the same token, taking away civil liberties in order to provide mediocre service for everyone.These are a list of my reasons why Universal Health care is a bad idea-
1. Health care is a much to important issue for our government to corrupt or run improperly.Look at the DMV full of frustration, incompetence, and in-efficiency. Should we really but something like our health care in the hands of the government?
2. Lack of medical innovation.For every 100 drugs that the United States develops, Canada develops 1. A capitalist economy encourages drug innovations and progress.
3. Profit motives, competition, and individual ingenuity have always lead to greater control and cost effectiveness.By leaving the only health care provider being the government, it creates a type a monopoly and puts a blockade on original ideas.
4. “Free” health care doesn’t actually mean “free”.Free, but meaning your taxes will increase or budgets for other government programs like defense, education, ect. Will be cut.
5. Medical decisions are made based on money not need.Since money will be scarcely spread, doctors begin making medical decisions on economy rather than need. If you are picking up the tab, doctor’s typically have no hesitations to recommend a pre-cautionary test or measure.
6. It’s your choice.With a universal health care program the government appoints a doctor to you. If you have Cancer, you can’t use your hard-earned money to appoint the best doctor money can buy. The government tells you what underpaid, and possibly unqualified doctor must treat your life threating aliment.
7. If costs are “free” patients are likely not to curb their costs.As it currently is, patients who have limited health care typically curb drug costs and doctor visits. However, if health care is “free” total costs would be several times what they are now, exceeding predicted budgets by Universal Health Care association.
8. Government mandated procedures will reduce doctor-flexibly and lead to poor patient care.Universal Health Care eliminates doctor-patient relationships. You become a number in the eyes of assigned medical providers and pharmaceutical companies. Personal phone calls and concern about your well-being are completely eliminated.
9. Gaps in coverage.Some plans don’t cover all aspects of health care. Physical Therapy isn’t covered in most plans; so if you break a bone, and require physical therapy you are forced to pay out of pocket. Not because you can not afford insurance, because the government won’t allow you to purchase any.
10. Healthy people would be forced to pay for the burden of those who smoke or who are obese.Think about it, do you want to exercise everyday and stay healthy, and be forced to pay for the smoker and frequent doughnut eater next door?
11. A long painful hand over will have to take place.There will be a huge loss of jobs from the insurance companies. Then how long would it take the government to create new medical records for every single person, and how would our government possibly manage these records? (This could be a trick question).
12. No one would want to be a doctor.Doctors become over-worked because they are unable to moderate the in-take of patients. Government begins regulating their pay, with most doctor’s taking huge pay cuts. Then on top of that the patient relationships that doctor’s join the profession for; the process for seeing results, cures and patient results are eliminated.
13. The “43 million without health care” are able to receive it.Firstly, the typical response to why we need Universal Health Care is because “there are 43 million un-insured at one point.” At one point, that means it’s statistics all added together. Typically there are about 9-13 million of people uninsured at once. And these people are able to receive health care. Nonprofit and government-run hospitals provide services to those who don’t have insurance, and emergency care can never be denied to the un-insured.
Although I know this is extremely difficult issue, hopefully now you can see why a universal health care plan is not an ideal or good solution. It strips everyone of the liberties, especially the liberty to choose. This is your’s and your family’s health care, do you really want someone telling you what to do with it? Without your health where are you?