Universal healthcare, are you for or against it? why?

Answer 1

i am for universal health care and before i get a million thumbs down for merely stating my opinion let me explain why.
health care in our country has become big business, rather than having a local dr who you know and trust you have dr's who work for huge corporations, who dont care about you or your life. i do not trust insurance companies who have little regulation and can pretty much deny anyone they wish, they make decisions that kill people, even children. eliminating insurance companies would be the best thing to happen to american health care, they are the ones that drive up medical costs in the first place. universal health care wouldnt cost you much more than what you pay now for premium and co-pays, and the best thing is you couldnt be denied health care of any type. another reason i am in favor of it is because there has become a silent detest of the lower class, admit it when you think about all those people who dont work but still get health care it makes you a little mad, i think that if some can get it then we all should get it. alot of people dislike the idea of universal health care without knowing a thing about it, they think that the hospitals would automatically become crappy and it would take forever to get it, but thats not true, i have been in to the dr in europe and it takes no longer. everyone has to wait in the waiting room for a few minutes, thats natural, we do it now. people think that universal health care will thrust this country into a socialist state, but thats not true, we have universal education until grade 12 and this is not a socialist country. people dont want the government to be in control of their health care, well you know what???..i dont want greedy CEO's who dont care if i live or die in control of mine, i would much rather not pay for insurance, pay a little more in taxes, and have an elected representative regulate healthcare. why are people so quick to turn control over to a corporation rather than a little more to our elected officials, i will never know. this is my opinion, bring on the thumbs down.

Answer 2

Am for it.

I live in the UK and work in the NHS (our universal health care system). It has problems, but not as many as the US healthcare system has. Despite spending much more per head of population than other developed countries, the US has worse health outcomes. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care#Economics Life expectancy and infant mortality figures in the US are worse than in other developed countries, despite more money being spent (and wasted) in the USA.

In the UK there are waiting lists for routine problems. Problems that can not wait are treated as emergencies. Also, in the UK, people can also have private health care.

I can understand Americans being proud of living in the richest and most powerful country in the world. What I can not understand is why Amercians settle for an expensive healthcare system where babies die that would have a better chance of life if born in another developed country.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2167865,00.html

Answer 3

I favor a system that is AFFORDABLE healthcare. I don't belive in a total Socialist approach. Everyone contributes except the most destitute. Whether one contributs a little or a lot depends on ability to contribute. There should be copays and a small premium even for low income people. All treatment ordered by a medical provider will be covered, including some established "experimental" treatments. A cap on lawsuit rewards would be in my bill. If an insurance company doesn't like what the provider ordered they will have arbitration but only after the procedure or treatment has been performed. Let the insurance companies and doctors hash it out not let patients suffer. Medication should be purchased in sufficient numbers so as to warrent a price break but still give pharmasutical companies a profit. The FDA can authorize meds be purchased in other countries but not all would be eleigable. Preventative care should be the emphasis not reaction to what has resulted because someone failed to see the doctor as they couldn't afford it. Insurance companies make obscene profits and patients don't matter to them. That must stop and immediately. If all insurance companies need to become non-profit so be it. Frankly huge severance bonuses for failed company leaders is a good place to start cutting costs. Eliminate medicare and medicaid and use the money collected for them to help pay for the premiums for those of low income status. Everyone would be covered regardless of previous conditions and all the other excuses now used by insurance companies to deny coverage. For those who are employed the deduction would be paid as it is now by your employer. For the unemployed or those on low incomes there would be a central office, like IRS has, where their payments can be collected and posted. Those wishing to opt out will not have insurance of any kind and must pay in full for any treatment they receive whether a small bandage for a cut or major cancer treatment costing a million dollars. Once one opts out that is it unless they have a full physical paid for by them to get back into the system. We can't have someone with an advanced case of cancer who refused to opt in all of a sudden opt in because it will start costing them. The decision must be made and only reversed if health is good and premiums are paid on time for those wishing to join after the fact.

Answer 4

I'm for it.

I can't afford insurance, I am a student and have a mountain of student loans to pay off.

I have a condition that insurance won't cover that will need to be addressed as well.

Anyone who thinks UH will result in long waiting lines for everything is just mistaken.
The lines are already too long at emergency rooms because people let their illness go too long without proper care because they can't afford it until it's too late.

Furthermore, Anyone who argues that point is also ignoring the fact that they will be free to pay for their useless insurance and over-priced doctors if they want "better" care...

Lastly, just because an Emergency room has to admit patients does not mean it is "free"... they send you an inflated bill no matter how poor you are... I know from experience.

Answer 5

Totally in favor of it.
The quality of health care will skyrocket, costs will drop, and the quality of care will increase beyond our wildest dreams!
Medicine will no longer be considered a business like WalMart or McDonald's, but will actually serve the purpose for which it was intended.
Doctors will actually enter a practice to care for patients rather then make a fortune and retire early.
The cost of drugs will be affordable to the people who need them, and there will be less suffering.
It would be appropriate for the wealthiest country in the world to take care of it's own citizens. And appropriate.

Answer 6

The only way that universal health care can work the way it's supposed to is if you take money totally out of the picture like in the TV show Star Trek. If money is still involved, someone somewhere is going to figure out a way to make millions if not billions from it.

Answer 7

IN PRINCIPLE I'm for it because one way or another the public treasury ends up paying for some kind of health care for the unfortunate. Providing this care via regular checkups and preventive treatments would be much more cost effective than our current approach of ignoring a problem until there is either an individual emergency room visit or a large public health problem. I vote my wallet -- I'm a Democrat.

Gloves, I know a lot of Candian nurses who WORK and LIVE in the USA, but jump thru all kinds of hoops to maintain their Canadian citizenship. Why? So they can keep their health care plan! Must be a mighty fine plan if well paid health care professionals are all that anxious to keep it. Stop looking at the TV screen so much, and try looking out your window at reality. Wake up and smell the propaganda.

Answer 8

I am for exactly what has been proposed, that is universal health insurance. No candidate or party that I know of is proposing universal healthcare,

Answer 9

I favor it. Too many millions of Americans have little access to healthcare. The main reason cited against it is the cost, but healthcare costs are skyrocketing anyway and have been for years.

Answer 10

For it because it's actually cheaper than for profit health care. Despite what other people say Canadians don't pay 50% of their income in taxes. They pay the same amount we pay, except they don't waste trillions in corporate welfare and pointless wars. It is a fact that if you remove the huge administrative costs, advertising costs, and the profit out of health insurance then the government can cover everybody for what we already pay now.