Module 2 Assignment 2: Factors in Favor of and Against
Name: Kellie Runyon
Topic: Universal health care: Governmental provision of free health care for all citizens.
Part 1: Matrix
Strength of the Argument
(1- strongest,
6 - weakest)
Reasons for
Reasons Against
1
Universal health care would be affordable for everyone
Millions of people would save money with universal healthcare due to everyone paying an equal amount; whether it be through tax increase or some other form. However, it will amount to less money than those who are paying for healthcare now due to the fact that every citizen pays for it and not only the people who can afford the raising prices.
Tax Increases to cover the healthcare change.
2
Public health would improve with universal health care
All citizens will have unlimited access to the medical professionals. Many people that cannot afford insurance will now have unlimited opportunities to get annual exams and help to prevent major health issues from going unseen.
With an increase in the amount of people needing/wanting medical treatment, there will be a shortage of medical staff. This will cause longer wait times, limited resources, as well as not having enough doctors and specialists to meet the demand.
3
The cost of healthcare would be lower for the US when expenses are prioritized.
Other countries that provided universal health care spend half as much as the US does with the amount of people who currently have health insurance. The US is
-Some may disagree with me because banning larger drinks will just make people buy more smaller sized drinks allowing them to take in more sugar and calories.
Under universal healthcare, the cost of insurance would be reduced. The employers would have to pay less for insurance than the status quo. As of 2011, 59.5% of Americans or 184 million Americans were receiving health insurance through their employer. Based on the previous statistic, the amount of money spent on 184 million Americans under universal healthcare would total to around $850 billion compared to the $1.7 trillion current day. As the old saying goes, Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. By using the money businesses saved, they could use this money to invest and improve the business, and hopefully boost the economy by creating
Also, everyone would be equal, no one would have better health care. This would help people and it would pretty much be a peacemaker. But since everyone has health care, people would go to the doctor for reasons that aren?t as important as others. This would also mean the wait for check-ups, surgeries, and visits at the hospital would be extremely long. ?Health tourists? fly to countries such as India, Turkey, Hungary, Germany, Malaysia, Poland and Spain to have surgeries performed without a wait. Doctors estimate that by the end of the decade, patients in Britain would be flying to places as far as South Africa and South America to have surgeries performed. People seem to be willing to pay extra money to be cured. Many patients in America say they would have died waiting to have their surgery. People like Donald Hilgendorf tell those wishing for universal health care to be careful. His doctor told him he should have a very serious and life-threatening surgery. He thought about what he should do and decided to get a second opinion and asked another clinic. They said he shouldn't do the surgery. He later found out that someone went ahead with the surgery and they died within months. So if there was universal health care in the country, no one would be able to get a second opinion. And thanks to a second opinion, a man lived.
The United States has the most expensive health care system in the world and some 45 million Americans are uninsured under the current health care system, and these numbers continue to grow. However with universal health care coverage everyone could enjoy equal access to health care, as a right afforded to them as American citizens. In a country as wealthy as the United States, there is no justifiable reason why Americans should go without health care and/or die
Universal healthcare in the U.S. would be a bad idea for the reason that the government would have to spend more money, which means that the American people would have to pay higher taxes than we already do. In the U.S.A. the public pays $4,103.82 per person and the private cost per person is $4,609.18 which put together is more than $8,000.00 dollars per person.If you are to have universal health care in America government spending would have to increase. But you can't just take a country where the government spends about 47% of the health care cost in the U.S. to a single-payer. Universal health care, government spending would have to increase and if government spending increased taxes would be higher.
The question of Universal Healthcare in the United States has valid and non valid arguments with supporters on both sides of the issue. Millions of Americans do not have affordable health care insurance. The main question is who is responsible to provide this? Is it feasible for government to pay for the lack of health care by taxpayer’s dollars? Should you be responsible for yourselves or should you be compensated by the government? Unemployment is at record high making health insurance less attainable or affordable than ever. In most cases, additional restrictions or
"Universal healthcare refers to a healthcare system that provides benefits to all persons in a particular country." (Definition of "Universal Healthcare Coverage", Investopedia.com). This form of healthcare is used among the richest countries, Ex. Canada and France. Other rich countries that use the Universal Healthcare system spend far less than the United States does. Although the U.S spends more on healthcare, “The U.S ranks 28th below almost all other rich countries, when it comes to the quality of its healthcare assessed by UN parameters (pdf, p.13)"(Annalisa Merreli, A history of why the US is the only rich country without universal healthcare, qz.com). These statistics call for a change. The United States should adopt universal healthcare because it would benefit business, provide equal access to healthcare, and is a human right.
This project will explore the current state or our healthcare and where it is predicted to cost us in the future. We will also examine the overall health programs and how the uninsured will affect the system entirely. Universal healthcare would alleviate the financial burden on some of the population and provide access to almost all of the country's population; however, this system will cost more. Funding the program will be discussed as well as the taxes and other funding that will help pay for the coverage. Likewise, how
One prevalent argument is that if free universal healthcare is supplied, it will eliminate the competition and innovation in the healthcare field. Formosa Post, an author for Universal Health care clearly states, “Universal health care eliminates the free market for health care where prices may be lower. There is no incentive to create better medications or pursue better medical services. The universal health care will reduce the amount of money doctors can make thereby reducing the attraction in the practice. This could create shortage of doctors in the long-run.” This honestly is a valid worry but this worry doesn’t outweigh the benefits of free universal healthcare. Also, even though there is free universal healthcare doesn’t necessary mean that there would be no innovation. Healthcare centers will still be competing for your favor. Because you will still be able to choose your own
According to World Health Organization, “Universal Health Coverage means that all people and communities can use the promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative and palliative health services they need, of sufficient quality to be effective, while also ensuring that the use of these services does not expose the user to financial hardship”. (WHO.int) By doing so, we give the people the opportunity to be equal to the rest of the society. Since the cost of a healthcare plan is beyond most people’s budget in the United States, the average person spends more money on healthcare insurance than groceries and housing together. This condition leads many to have no coverage at all. In fact, there are over 45 million uninsured residents in the U.S. in it
The PPACA will also have a direct negative impact on the medical field as a whole. By 2025 there is expected to be a shortage of nearly 52,000 physicians. This, coupled with the number of office visits increasing over 100 million times, will put incredible strain on the healthcare system (“The Patient Protection”). This will cause wait times for medical treatment to be greatly increased. Patients will be more likely to go to the emergency room for minor treatments, such as coughs due to colds, thus causing patients with real emergencies to wait even longer. Also, there will be no competition for patients. This competition is what encourages health care workers to excel in their specialties and to become better. This may even cause fewer people to choose to pursue a career in the medical profession (Ireland).
With a universal health care system, the government would have control and run the system, therefore, the cost of healthcare would be regulated. “A universal health care system would be regulated by the government, so costs overall would be reduced with a more monitored system to reduce inflated costs for tests, hospital stays and procedures.” (Ireland, 2017) When you regulate medical costs, the cost of medical coverage, supplies, and prescriptions are more affordable for everyone.
“Weight Loss: Health Risk Associated With Obesity.” WebMD. WebMD. 04 Jan. 2011. Web. 13 Dec. 2011.
According to the United States census Bureau 47.9 million persons in the US which is approximately 15.4% of the entire US population, in 2012 lacked health insurance. Mexico and the US are the only nations of the thirty-four member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) that do not provide their citizens with universal health care. On the other hand, health care right should be provided to any person in the developed world and no one should be excluded from it. Universal health care would enhance public health, put an end to medical bankruptcies, minimize overall spending in healthcare, assist small businesses as well as the fact that health care must be a crucial service offered by the government (Mangan, 2014).
A big argument against universal healthcare stems from the impatience and selfishness we embody as a society. For some people, long and dreadful wait times are the greatest socialism-induced evil possible. In a universal healthcare system, these extended wait times exist as the byproduct of giving everyone the equal opportunity to receive care. With more money going towards doctors and hospitals, it’s possible to cut back on these wait times but despite this it is still a more beneficial than not being able to receive a service at all. This happens in the United