@83. goy:
RE: 75. David S: – Rationing is fair. Rations ensure that everyone gets at least the bare minimum needed to get by.
The fact that this statement is unsupportable nonsense is beside the point, since rationing is neither desirable, nor necessary at this time.
I would argue that rationing is both desirable and necessary at this time. Health care is a public good, not simply an individual purchasing decision. We all benefit when more people have health coverage. There is no reason that we should not ensure at least a basic ration of health care for all our citizens. It would not only improve the health of the nation, it would also reduce the overall cost of health care. The current system is not desirable, nor is it necessary at this time. For-profit insurance is a poor substitute for true health care.
- … tens of millions have no access to health care …
This statement is hyperbole of the most unsupportable kind. Anyone who needs it can receive critical care per federal statute (look up EMTALA).
Critical care does not equal health care. Study the plight of the 40 million+ who are unable to access health care. Emergency rooms are not the answer, and your flippant dismissal of millions of your fellow citizens is hyperbole of the most unsupportable kind.
- No, the free market is worse than rationing, because it has priced so many out of a market for a very basic need.
That might be true if the health care market were a free market.
If the market did not face government regulation, the situation would be even worse. Health care is a public good – it makes no sense to leave each individual to fend for himself when it comes to the health of our people. It makes moral, political and financial sense.
- We already recognize the need for health care for the elderly in this country, and for those who are disabled. Public programs have been successfully and cost-effectively treating these populations in the USA.
Again. Wrong.
Medicare is bankrupt.
Medicare will never be bankrupt. Deficit spending is not bankruptcy. You may not like Medicare, but seniors do, and it will be there for them, despite your fantasies.
- In first world countries comprehensive care is freely available to all.
All? Really? And is that timely access? Or is it take-a-number-go-home-and-wait-for-a-letter-in-the-mail access? There’s no evidence to support your wild assertion. As usual.
There are more than thirty countries with better access and better outcomes than the USA, and all of them spend less per capita and cover everyone. The evidence is everywhere, and you have seen it before. We are the only western country that provides better health care for the incarcerated than we do for the general public. Think about it. Millions of your fellow citizens pay taxes to support health care for criminals that they can’t access without getting arrested.
This is not the land of the free or the home of the brave when children are put to death by their so-called “health insurance” company.
It is time to make this right.
Peace.
DS
