Why We Need Government-Run Universal Socialized Health Insurance

The best under-five-minute argument for ‘socialized medicine’ I’ve yet encountered.

10 Responses to Why We Need Government-Run Universal Socialized Health Insurance

  1. Jonathan Nori September 19, 2009 at 1:14 am #

    It’s a good presentation, but single-payer is far from the only viable option.

    I like a lot of the reforms that have been offered up, and think that health insurance should be run more like car insurance or whole-life life insurance policies + the much-flaunted “public option” and serious tort reform.

    At this point, though, I’m not sure which of the two autocrats I want managing my health care:

    1. A government employee paper-pusher with no interest whatsoever in whether or not I ever actually get the procedure I need (ever been to the DMV or a passport office?).

    2. A corporate employee who is contractually obligated to help me, but whose salary, advancement, and bonuses are determined by the amount of health insurance they can deny.

    It’s a real shame that honest discussion on this subject is being marred by the True Believers who think their way is the only right way to solve the problem (and it IS a problem).

  2. zoecarnate September 19, 2009 at 1:15 am #

    Fair and balanced as usual Jon.

    And I mean that. 🙂

  3. david September 19, 2009 at 1:27 am #

    hey. it works here. (canada)
    serious.
    I went to emergency 2 weeks ago with crazy bad pain in my leg. (Friday night). TWO DAYS LATER on Sunday morning, I was called in to have a CT Scan. Serious… only 2 days. They diagnosed me with an out of place disc in my lower back that was pressing on my sciatic. I went in for my scan and received results about an hour later. Excellent. Two days later I had a flairup of crazy pain and had to call 911. They allowed me to rest at the hospital for a while and upped my pain medication to a level that would help me better. Sent home and since then I’ve been getting much better.

    My bill? Only had to pay for my pain medication.

    You guys have got to get some of this sweet action.

    • Dave September 19, 2009 at 4:20 am #

      David – Your bill was paid by the taxes you and the whole country pay. Nothing is free.

      I had an issue with pain. Went to the emergency room at 5AM – was diagnosed by 8AM – was in surgery by 12AM – was on the way home from having my gall bladder removed by 8PM.

      I am between jobs so am one of those millions without health insurance. Signed some papers – agreed to pay over time. Bill was reduced from what insurance would have been charged. Done. Will pay the bill because – and get this it is an interesting idea – I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR MY HEALTH CARE !

      • PJ September 19, 2009 at 11:12 am #

        I also had same surgery after being hospitalized for 4 days. The total bill was $40,000. This is insane! With my insurance, I owed $10,000. I am still making payments on it. Imagine, Dave, what if we have to have an ongoing treatment for the rest of our life. What if we lose our job and/or health insurance. Can we really afford? Impossible! When the health insurance companies dictate who can buy policy or not, what can be treated or not, and what the policies in our government should be or not, it is enough. Enough is enough! You heard that average American pays more than anyone in the world, but the quality of our healthcare is at 37th. Go figure!

      • Travis Greene September 21, 2009 at 6:14 pm #

        Dave, that is an interesting idea. Morally unconscionable to me, but interesting.

  4. Kent September 19, 2009 at 10:04 am #

    First off nice piece of rhetoric, boarding on propaganda.

    Second off government health care is not free now, neither is fire services.

    The group paying for an individual,s needs idea is the basic form of insurance protection, and the presentation had that point correct. But to compare insurance administrative and profits cost to government run services cost is off I think.

    Anyone who has dealty with any government bureaucracy will have stories to tell of inefficiency, stonewalling, dragging of feet, laziness and incompetance. And this is our tax dollars at work.

    Granted we do have a lot of good public servants. But it only takes one bad one to put the kabosh on something.

    Are we willing to trade off a private insurance agent, who has to answer to regulators for governmental bureaucrats who are a law unto themselves?

    Either way, bad business is bad business. Either way we all will have to deal with bad employees, crooked employees and uncaring employees, whether private insurance employees or government bureaucrats.

    I think the better option is better regulation of the whole industry.

    Another point, how much are we willing to pay for “free health care”? For it ain’t free. You might think it is, our friend from Canada might think his health care is free, but it isn’t.

    Government produces not one single cent of profits. All their money comes from taxation, and printing up more (which is inflation).I would ask David from Canada what his taxes are? And what his wage is for the job he does? Then compare that wage to someone in America doing the same job, and see what their aveage health insurance cost is.

    I read of a cost comparison to someone in France, and their “free health care” costs them about half their salary, compared to someone in the same job in America. Yes, they get free health care, but take home half of what a comparable worker in America takes home.

    We already have Medicare, and Medicaid. Government run health care. And it runs in the red, year after budget year. It is rife with abuses, from patients, doctors, hospitals and other medical services. If our government can not regulate these services which have been in place for about 45 years,(Medicaid and Medicare were created on July 30, 1965), how can we expect them to take on more?

    • PJ September 19, 2009 at 2:27 pm #

      There are two main points raised regarding the necessity of healthcare reform. They are about the abuse of greedy for-profit health insurance companies and uninsured population in America.

      1. Medicare and Medicaid treat people first then work with the bureaucratic process to deal with bills and not with patience. Private insurance companies don’t. They tell doctors what procedures can be covered or not. You heard what those giant health insurance corporations do in order to raise their profits. They don’t even sell their policies to people with preexisting conditions, to the very people whom need it the most! They raise premiums constantly. I got my personal experience to share. I purchased policies for my wife and me. It was about $300. A year after they double the premium. By doubling the deductible, it stay close to $300. A year later, they double the premium, AGAIN! I had to reapply in order to keep it close to $300. Now I don’t have health insurance because I cannot afford it. What is eating up the budget of crumbling companies in US is the health insurance cost that they have to pay for their employees. Many companies do not even give full time positions to employees any more. You know why. There are so many working poor in America. Go figure.

      I also believe in preventative medicine. Average Americans spend more money on health cost, but we are no way live healthier or happier than the rest of the world. We are sick and fat. People consume handful medicines each day. It is difficult to find people without any prescription drugs nowadays. Who’s drugging them? The pharmaceutical and health related companies love to keep Americans on their role because those conditions bring in their profits.

      2. When people do not have affordable health insurance, they wait until they get really sick and will go to emergency rooms which will cost government a lot more money. When people get sick, they want to find out what is wrong with them. When they think about the high cost of visiting doctors, examination and treatment, they shun.

      How will the government cover the healthcare cost with the reform? Let’s leave it to the government. I know for sure that they will not rob us like the health insurance and related companies have done to us. What is wrong with paying higher tax to help our fellow citizens, neighbors, friends and families?

      Most of all, let us not forget that the politics of any government should never be dictated by the special powerful interest groups. The government should rule for the welfare of their citizens who pay tax for their jobs and benefits that many do not have. I believe that the lobbying must go in the life of the politics and government. They corrupt politicians and policy-making that will affect all of our lives. The government should exist and work for the common welfare of the whole and NEVER for those special powerful interest groups.

      In Christ Alone

  5. Micah Redding September 19, 2009 at 4:44 pm #

    This assumes that government should exist, and that we shouldn’t just all live in a communitarian-libertarian anarchic utopia, the way Jesus intended! 🙂

    And what if you DON’T think fire-fighting, water treatment, or Police services are being handled properly?

    And why don’t we have an option for a volunteer health insurance plan, just like our volunteer fire departments?

    Why are government-run and corporate-run the only options being considered?

  6. tonkoson September 28, 2009 at 2:15 pm #

    It is natural

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