Why do you oppose socialized healthcare?

Question

Most of the Democratic nominees want to erase those preniums on medical insurance so that the average American won't be overburdened with personal bills. Don't you want the same socialized utopia as with your Congressman/woman?

There seems to be a huge argument over whether socialized means a slippery slope in pharmaceutical quality or patient care but I don't buy that since Canada and the Scandinavian countries have all adopted a similar universal plans w/o any leaks or problems

What are your reasons for opposing such a plan?

Answer 1

The main reason:

There is no Constitutional authorization for Congress to tax or spend the peoples' money on healthcare.

To quote James Madison, called the "Father of the Constitution: "Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government."

And I don't recall seeing any Amendments to give Congress the power to do this, do you?

I could go on about the increasing costs, such as in Canada where health care eats up a significant portion of the provincial budgets, how there are long waits for procedures and operations, how taxes are increased, and how government corruption and inefficiency make it all even worse, but I'll stop here.

Keep this thought in mind:

The same government that gave you the great response to Katrina is the government you want in charge of your health care and retirement?

Answer 2

Are you kidding? Is this a joke question? Since when has any federal government program reduced costs? That's the goal isn't it? Or is the goal to simply transfer the burden of paying for healthcare to the producers of this nation, similar to how the wealthiest 50% of this nation almost pay 100% of all income taxes? Yeah, Canada and most European countries have adopted government-paid, universal healthcare, and they are going bankrupt as a result. They can't control costs and the quality of care has decreased dramatically. Why do you think so many rich Canadians and Europeans come to the states for elective or non-life threanening surgeries? It's because they'd be on a waiting list for months to get the same procedure done, that is if some government beaurocrat didn't disaprove the procedure in the first place. Are you and others so ignorant that you think government supplied healthcare is "free"? Where the hell do you think the money comes from to fund the program? The people who pay taxes - that's who. Obviously, you don't pay much in taxes or you're in the "Earned Income Tax Credit" catagory reserved for sloths and other mental giants living in this country. God, I hope you don't vote. By the way, your question hardly makes sense. Did you finish the 2nd grade? If so, you need some English grammar classes pronto.

Answer 3

Honestly if I thought it was workable I would not oppose it. The thing is that government has a terrible track record of running things. You fill out a small book now when you go to the doctor imagine having to file an application to go see a doctor and then having to wait on approval, then if you need treatment starting all over again.Bureaucracy does not lend itself to the most rapid or best service. Now a little less comprehensive plan that covers all children and elderly with some coverage for the disadvantaged work age adults or those with catastrophic costs might be a better place to start from as long as the citizens covered were still free to seek and pay for their own health care if they choose.

The cost would be substantial but i think with certain block negotiation it could be affordable, I just don't trust Congress not to pork it up or play it for political gain as they do everything.

Answer 4

Because I have worked my butt off all my life to make a place in this world that is better for my kids than what I had and now you're gonna tell them that they get the same treatment as the kids of some welfare cow baby factory. Not on my watch. I know its selfish and its classist, I get it. But the fact is nobody in this country today has no access to healthcare, we cannot turn you away in emergency type situtaions. My preventative care has been solely my research and responsibility for my entire adult life. The one time I used the healthcare system was when I broke my jaw playing football and went to the emergency room, got the same treatment anyone would get no matter of insurance or social standing.

This country was built on the free-market system, while I will admit to flaws in Capitalism, it is still the economic system of our country. The slippery slope argument does apply; when we embrace socialized medicine how long until we embrace other aspects of a socialist government.

The solution is easier. Tort reform to limit malpractice suits and awards. Regulation of the drug industry and insurance industry. These are real world answers to free-market healthcare which would work if we just pushed our lawmakers in that direction. Instead we yell at each other about socializing it or leaving it alone, when all we need is a couple of tweaks to right it.

Answer 5

Let me tell you about socialized medicine from first hand experience!

This past year I moved from Chicago to Prague, in the Czech Republic. They have socialized medicine here. It s*cks. No matter what the U.S. tries, it will fail. Socialized medicine will always mean doctors who just don't care, rampant corruption, decaying facilities, shortage of facilities, lack of proper diagnostic machines, such as MRI's, and so on.

I met a guy from Canada. He was amazed that in DuPage County alone (a suburban area of Chicago), there were more MRI machines than in all of Canada.

Now, here's how socialized medicine will work. You will go to some free care clinic. You will wait in a depressing, dreary waiting room with dozens of other people. Most places won't even give you an appointment. You just show up. Here in Prague, when you tell your employer you have to go to the doctor, he knows you mean you will be gone all day. I normally have to wait 2-3 hours. Do you know how galling it is to wait that long? And I'm not even part of their system! I am a cash-paying customer, but I have to wait like a chump along with all the other time-abused sad sacks.

The doctors don't care about good service. They get paid the same no matter what. Heck, they'd love it if they had fewer patients. Less work.

When you finally get an audience with "god", he will treat you like a charity case, and summarily send you on your way after the most cursory of examinations. People under socialized medicine quickly learn that they don't have the same rights as a person who is actually paying cash under a normal system.

There are only two countries where Socialized medicine works, Norway and Sweden. And since Sweden has the highest suicide rate of any industrialized country, they might not want to brag too much about the wonders of Socialized medicine. Obviously their psych care isn't so hot.

Here is another example of how socialized medicine does not work. First and foremost, every country that has socialized medicine rations health care. That will happen in the U.S. no matter how much money they try and throw at the system. That means old people do not get dialysis. That means that, if you injure your knee, they won't give you an MRI. They'll have you wait a few months (during which time you could easily do permanent damage to you knee since you don't know what's wrong with it). Then finally the doctor will reluctantly give you the prescription for an MRI or arthroscopic surgery. When you get the results, they don't tell you to come back the following Monday for surgery. They tell you to come back Friday, four months down the line. Yeah, surgery is a long wait, from Argentina to England.

I know what you're thinking: "Oh, well the U.S. isn't like these second-rate countries. We'd do much better." No, we won't.

First of all, we have the highest obesity in the world. The system will get flooded with people demanding they be sent to fat farms or have expensive surgery to cure their "obesity disease". Americans take way more medication than in other countries. I think we take something like 8 times more than people in Japan, for example. Doctors are going to prescribe the cheap stuff, not what you need.

No matter what teary eyed reforms are made, you'll always have an inadequate system. It simply can not work. It's just a black hole for tax dollars. It would be the biggest bureaucracy ever attempted, making welfare look like a church bake sale.

Answer 6

While I don't like the current insurance-based system, a completely socialized system would be even worse. Every use an HMO? Even though there might be other options out there, the HMO treats you like dirt, leaves you undiagnosed for months, gives you the wrong treatments, all while sucking a big chunk of your paycheck every month. With /no other options/ how do you think a medical-care bureacracy would work? It'd be like an HMO, only worse.

True, there are are smaller countries that don't face the same healthcare challenges as the US that manage to cruise along with socialized healthcare. Maybe it's cultural.

Answer 7

There is not enough money to pay even with the huge tax hike that would be necessary. Then there would be caps on service just as in Medicare. In other words if a person with medicare goes to the Doctor, he receives a pitiful fee like 50 bucks for the visit with which he has to buy malpractice insurance, pay the rent, his staff etc. If a non medicare person visits more is paid to him/her. That is not even the main cost however. It is the technology of ct scans , PET scans, MRIs, nuclear medicine technology, Canada and Scandinavia do not have our success rates for Cancer or other diseases. radiation and chemotherapy etc. I am not opposed so much as fatalistic about its working.

Answer 8

Compared to the US, the countries you mentioned have much smaller populations,more flexible budgets and more responsible governments. We have 300 million people, a huge defense budget and a government bureaucracy that buys $400 toilet seats. A government sponsored health care plan would be a nightmare, it would be bogged down in rules and regulations and mountains of paperwork.

I agree that something has to be done about health care in America but I really can't see a totally government sponsored program ever actually working.

Answer 9

Ask those average Canadians and Europeans, not the rich ones, how much they enjoy their "free" socialized medical care. No choice, long wait for operations, even longer wait for doctor's appointments. Ask the employees about the burdensome tax rate to support this "free" socialized medical care that stifles economic growth. Wow, we're really missing out!

Answer 10

Although I keep reading these arguments as to how great this is in other countries, it's not. Many European country's are beginning to pull to the right because they've gotten themselves into financial disasters.

A lady from Canada was on this forum the other day. Her taxes are somewhere around 50%! That's before you pay taxes on items that you purchase.

Socialized medicine also means losing the good Drs. etc.

Is that what you folks really want? Long lines, no specialists any more, MUCH higher taxation?