An editorial I wrote about health care

[Guest guest]

Here's an editorial I wrote about our broken health care system. I

don't care what party you belong to, an overwhelming number of

economists, doctors, and business leaders now agree health insurance

for all is both an economic and moral issue. As Warren Buffet said,

don't pay attention to people who shout catch phrases and one liners

to denigrate health care (such as " socialized medicine " ). It is a

deliberate attempt to shut down conversation. There is only one group

opposed to universal health care: rich, private insurance and drug

companies. They are in the business to make profit, not keep

Americans healthy. They have accountants making health decisions, not

doctors. And they hire lobbyists who have many congressman in their

pockets (unfortunately, most from the GOP).

All the arguments against health care are easily dismissed. Higher

taxes? Overall, cost-benefit will improve because if taxes are raised

to cover the uninsured, premiums for private holders will go down.

Also, diagnostic and treatment procedures will go down. The uninsured

only go to the hospital when their situation is dire, and then require

expensive tests and medicines which they can't afford. So they just

refuse to pay their bills, The hospitals cover this cost by passing

it on to insurance companies and their clients.

Government run bureaucracy? Studies have shown Medicare is often more

efficient than private insurance, has a lower deductibles, a higher

network of providers and is portable and permanent. Plus, Medicare

lets you choose your own doctors, unlike many PPOs and HMOs.

Slow, long waiting lines? Yes, it can take longer to get an

appointment and service. However, this is because universal health

care (such as Germany, England, and Canada) is focused on cheaper,

preventative medicine, and people use the system far more frequently

and when their health is better than people in the U.S. We lived in

Germany when I was a child. We had full coverage by excellent

doctors, and it was very efficient.

Morally? The U.S. pays more than any industrialized country for

health care, and receives less benefits. In Germany, Canada, and

other developed countries, NO ONE is forced into bankruptcy due to a

critical illness. In the U.S., people are losing their homes because

cancer or some other costly illness strikes a family. 47 million

Americans are not covered. Everyone in Canada, Europe and Japan are.

Also, universal health care would eliminate " pre-existing condition "

clauses, which directly affects people with dwarfism.

Economically? It just makes plain sense that U.S. companies would be

able to better compete globally against Europe, Japan and China if we

had universal health care.

Personally? It can, and will, affect your family. My brother died on

Feb. 13th because he couldn't get a proper health care plan. With

that in mind, here is the link. A warning: Republicans may not like

what I have to say. But we need to put a human face to this problem,

not a monetary face.

http://www.uwire.com/Article.aspx?id=3803348

Bill