Heathcare: The cold equations , From the Clackamas Review
I particularly like this comparison
All children, he pointed out, are entitled to a public education, which is financed by an explicit public subsidy. All taxpayers contribute to that subsidy, and all children receive the same benefit. Parents with more income can purchase additional services, like tutors, to enhance their children’s education. "When we run out of money in Salem, when fiscal constraints are tight, we talk about shorter school years or fewer electives – things like that," he said. "What we don’t talk about is cutting access. We would never say, ‘Next year, we’re not going to teach grades 11 or 12,’ or ‘Every family earning more than $40,000 per year will have to postpone their children’s entry into school until 2008.’"
The whole article is really good - you should read it. This guy really has a good spiel. Final point on the flip ...
As an alternative, Kitzhaber suggested a rational
system of universal access, akin to the public education system in the
United States. As one example, he cited the German model, which
provides a basic level of coverage to all citizens, and allows them to
purchase additional coverage on an individual basis.
"It should be a benefit for all of us, not just
for some of us," he said. "Most of the uninsured today are working, and
most of them are contributing to a healthcare subsidy from which they
themselves do not benefit.
"We are much closer to the precipice than we think."