Michael Moore compares universal health care to the fire department. We don't ask ourselves, "Will putting this family's house raise our taxes?", "Shouldn't they hire their own firefighting team?" "Wouldn't the invisible hand put out the fire better?"
We can add the police department, and other government projects like public schools, the library, the US postal service. Why do these programs work so well?
Let's look at how Universal health care is real and the very common misconceptions.
Oddly enough, private fire insurance was once a very real thing...
Pris from LA writes:
"London had private fire insurance and private fire brigades until the 1800s. The debacle that became the firestorms of 1666 was exacerbated by this inefficient system. No less a light than Benjamin Franklin founded the first volunteer fire department in the US in Philadelphia, PA because of the history of private fire insurance in Britain.
Yes, health care for all is very similar to the principle of firefighting for all, police protection for all, postal service for all and K-12 education for all. These public goods haven't turned us into a Soviet Socialist Republic. Capitalism remains in spite of these forays into "socialism." If anything has made us resemble a Soviet Republic, it's the assaults on privacy launched by both the Private Sector and the current Administration."
Now onto the body...
Every human being has certain inalienable rights, among these are "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness". As a human being we have the right to vote. We have the right to vote and not be subject to a poll tax. We have to a tax funded education, to a tax funded military for national defense. Hardly anyone disagrees with these rights. Yet, the United States is the only industrialized nation that does not guarantee access to health care as a right of citizenship. This right is a fundamental and inalienable right, protecting the individuals right to life and freedom to pursue happiness.
A major objection to a single-payer healthcare plan, or multi-payer plan (like germany, which President Clinton proposed for the United States) is that the United States has "the best health care system in the world". Let’s explore these and other popular myths.
Here are some facts:
The United States ranks 23rd in infant mortality, down from 12th in 1960 and 21st in 1990
The United States ranks 20th in life expectancy for women down from 1st in 1945 and 13th in 1960
The United States ranks 21st in life expectancy for men down from 1st in 1945 and 17th in 1960.
The United States ranks between 50th and 100th in immunizations depending on the immunization. Overall US is 67th, right behind Botswana
Now, there are some who wrongly insist that universal healthcare would be too expensive; that it would cost too much for every person to receive medical care:
The United States spends at least 40% more per capita on health care than any other industrialized country with universal health care.
Federal studies by the Congressional Budget Office and the General Accounting office show that single payer universal health care would save 100 to 200 Billion dollars per year despite covering all the uninsured and increasing health care benefits.
State studies by Massachusetts and Connecticut have shown that single payer universal health care would save 1 to 2 Billion dollars per year from the total medical expenses in those states despite covering all the uninsured and increasing health care benefits
The costs of health care in Canada as a % of GNP, which were identical to the United States when Canada changed to a single payer, universal health care system in 1971, have increased at a rate much lower than the United States, despite the US economy being much stronger than Canada’s
Studies reveal that citizens in universal health care systems have more doctor visits and more hospital days than in the US
Would it lead to less, or more choice for the patient?:
• There would be free choice of health care providers under a single payer universal health care system, unlike our current managed care system in which people are forced to see providers on the insurer’s panel to obtain medical benefits
• There would be no management of care under a single payer, universal health care system unlike the current managed care system which mandates insurer preapproval for services thus undercutting patient confidentiality and taking health care decisions away from the health care provider and consumer
We need to end the apathy on the subject and see that the United States institutes a Universal healthcare system. We need to end the misinformation and take action!