My uncle and I had a quick exchange around Obama’s proposal for socialized healthcare that I thought I would share portions of here. It is relatively high level but, should serve as a catalyst for further debate.
My Uncle:
With all due respect Brandon, I probably pay quite a bit more in taxes than you do. It’s the cost of freedom (and civilization) for people like you and me who are not in the armed services.
A majority of businesses support a government health plan because they know it is more efficient and thus less costly than the mess that “free enterprise” has created now. Do you really think that we are not already paying for the 40 some million without health insurance? Every time someone without insurance is treated and is unable to pay, it forces up the costs of health care for all the rest of us, just like uninsured drivers increase the costs for the rest of us.
I much prefer a rational, single-payer system that pays for healthcare efficiently and not haphazardly like the current system. If someone wants to pay for additional insurance in the private market, they’re free to do it. The only argument I’ve heard from rightwing hardliners is that it is somehow unfair to have the government competing with private insurers because the government (and therefore taxpayers) don’t have to cover the cost of profits for the insurance companies. Arguing that taxpayers and consumers should pay more so insurance companies make more profits doesn’t really seem like a winning argument to me.
Brandon:
A. Of course you pay more taxes, you make more and we have a non-sensical progressive tax system. I agree with paying taxes for a limited amount of government services (and I agree that defense via the armed services is the highest priority among them). I just think that the government is far too big and has taken over far too many things that private industry does best.
B. Please cite any example of “the majority of businesses” supporting socialized Obama healthcare, there are none. Some have begrudgingly acquiesced due to the opportunity to pawn off their employee healthcare on an inferior government system but the vast majority of small to medium size businesses hate and oppose the idea (see any of the recent Chamber of Commerce and business association polls).
C. Single-payer systems are always less efficient, over budget, and cause rationing because the government (with it’s political tomfoolery on both sides of the isle) is a poor steward of any business (including healthcare). The only way businesses are run efficiently is when there is a profit motive. Warm fuzzies and decision-by-committee cause government run efforts to be inefficient and costly.
In the end, I believe government is too big and prone to corruption no matter who is in power so, we need to minimize our risk by reducing the size of the government to the smallest possible.
From the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s website (the organization the represents businesses big and small):
“Creation of a “public plan.”
A government-run plan would be an unfair competitor, with the government acting as both the team owner and the referee. Government programs shift costs to the private sector. The Lewin Group estimates 130 million people would move from private to public insurance – this would be a disaster. It’s a very short step to putting all Americans in a single-payer system.”
“Minimum coverage.
Proposing a huge Federal Employee Health Benefits Program (FEHBP)-like minimum coverage package will bankrupt employers and workers. Cadillac, gold-plated coverage like this will not appeal to the young. The minimum level of coverage should be more akin to a high-deductible health plan with coverage of preventative services.”
You can send a letter opposing socialized healthcare to your Senator and Representative here.
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Tags: healthcare, Obama, Socialism, socialized healthcare
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Brandon,
As for the majority of businesses supporting health care reform, how about this? A majority of small business owners polled support a government alternative to today’s unworkable private health care. Small Businesses, Health Insurance, and Priorities for Reform http://mainstreetalliance.org/.....tions/#NAT
Also you are well-aware, the US Chamber of Commerce, like Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, is a political organization more than a business organization.
I’m reading your post five weeks late. Aren’t you aware that Medicare is a single-payer system? I’m guessing you are very young; please ask anyone you know over age 65 if they’ve had ANY problems with it. No forms, denials of coverage, or bills that took months to get paid. Ask them if they had problems finding a doctor, or excessive waiting times. And Medicare operates on only 3% admin. costs (according to Rep. Dennis Kucinich). So much for your point “C”. It’s quite the opposite: single-payer is far more efficient and cost-effective than the for-profit insurance cos, which, according to Harvard, keep slightly more than HALF of our premiums for admin, salaries, and profits. Also, why would 130 million people shift to a public plan unless it SAVED them money? If I’m paying $1000 for only $497 of medical care, than I can cut my “costs” in half by skipping this middle-man and paying my costs out of pocket! Expanding Medicare to everyone, and funding it by raising our Medicare tax from 1.45% to 5%, would be a simple fix to this crisis. The system is already in place, and I’m sure there are good recommendations around to improve it. Insurance is the problem, not the solution.