It is a figment of politician's imaginations. Look at any country with national health care and look at the average tax rate.
We'll never see a single-payor system in this country. It's un-American. What we may see is an expanded version of what Mass. is failing at - making it mandatory and GI.
Although auto is mandatory:
1) It's not GI - carriers are free to decline
2) Carriers can drop you - unlike health
3) Check studies on the % of people without auto
You cannot make it GI without giving billions to the insurance companies to keep the rates in check....which means higher taxes. With Medicare and Social Security is very big trouble there's no money in the budget to fund GI plans.
Americans can indeed get affordable GI coverage....if they're willing to take around a 6% tax increase....and that's to start the betting.
Currently the UK system is in very bad financial trouble. Mass. is already begging the gov't for millions more....just the keep the program afloat for another year.
Other factors to consider when comparing to other countries:
Well....its one thing to ask for it...its another to pay for it.
I've heard arguments that Europes health care system is better for the overall nation. Its not the best...but everyone's covered *agian...based on what i've read.
I know one thing...the Dr's will be against it. Hell...they would lose A LOT OF MONEY if we have a national system.
The European system has its positives and negatives like every system. It's just a matter of whether or not you want to be in the 50% tax bracket. I'm also not saying our system is perfect. There are some huge holes that have to be fixed but universal health care isn't the way to fix them.
Well said John! Politicians have been touting healthcare for years. Has anything happened yet? No.... want to know why? It can't. To fund National Healthcare for our overweight, sickly, drug taking culture would bankrupt our economy. The healthcare issue is just another platform for politicians to tell people what they want to hear.
True. What Americans think they see with the Canadian and UK systems is free health care. I'd suggest a tad bit of research on how much "free" health care costs those citizens.
Don't worry - when the Mass. program crumbles - which is inevitable - we'll have something to point to.
Right now we have working examples of how much GI coverage costs. Go price up indie coverage in NY.
Guaranteed issue. Nothing mandatory is guaranteed issue except Medicare...which then seniors need to purchase a supp plan for pure protection.
Question:
Before we think we can fund universal health care why not try to give seniors total protection on just part A without requiring anything additional.
After all, I'm for protecting seniors first who have done their time over giving some fat lazy depression-med-taking 30 year old "free" coverage.
Seniors first - then let's tackle the rest of the country.
You make a good case and a lot of sense. Welcome to the Nanny State. Waaaaaah!
But when is Medicare going to run out of funding? Baby Boomers are going to be Baby Busters when they break the Medicare bank. CMS will probably raise the age before seniors go onto Medicare due to extended life expectancies.
What was it when Medicare started up, 3- 5 years? Now, if you make it to 65, you'll make it to 80 or beyond. And I'm not even adding in the costs of life support and the higher costs of medical procedures. And aren't we nearly $1.00 out of every $5.00 going to healthcare? Universal health care is only going to up that number. Name one thing that the government has run well (exclude the military). Universal health care is the next Katrina. Ain't gonna happen.
Let's not forget the largest lobbying org is AARP and don't be thinking those old folks ain't gettin their damn Medicare after age 65. Hell will freeze over first.
Let's not forget the largest lobbying org is AARP and don't be thinking those old folks ain't gettin their damn Medicare after age 65. Hell will freeze over first.
I agree. But Medicare is now bankrupt -- tax income is less than the benefits being paid, and the fund is gone. So they're borrowing from the Treasury now.
What will the new Prez/Congress do?
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I thought this WAS a real job!
1) Pork riders on bills needs to stop. If say Alaska wants a museum they can pay for it.
2) Accountability of gov't funds. Right now there is none. Projects are funded with millions of dollars and no one tracks it.
3) Flat tax - it needs to happen. Right now we have a tax on success where people who work harder support tax reductions for people with no ambition.
4) Welfare programs....end them. Everyone gets "X" amount of years on welfare while we pay for child care and some type of trade or education. After that it ends. For the people who still don't get it put 'em in some type of nasty shack, give 'em food stamps and forget about 'em. Right now we have "welfare generations."
We actually have plenty of money - gobs of it. But it's grossly mismanaged. Large corporations pay little to no taxes under that "we'll just leave the country" threat.
We need to impose some type of tariff on the goods of companies who choose to run their business out of the country. They don't like paying taxes in the US? Fine - make it cost them double to operate overseas.
Last edited by healthagent : 03-04-2008 at 05:56 PM.
"If you make us pay we'll just jack our prices and the economy will be destroyed."
No...if they jack their rates to compensate they'll go out of business. I'd never fall for those BS threats.
MD falls for this **** all the time. We bid to have new companies in the state and give 'em free rides to "create jobs." Bullshit. There should be no haven for that junk. Every state should make 'em pay. As it stands now they just stop around until they find a state to bend over and take it up the rear.
Personally, I'm sneaking across the border and become an illegal immigrant in Mexico, buy my Mexican citizenship papers, climb the fence back over (I won't need a coyote, I know my way around) and go on whoever the next president's amnesty program. Then I'm set. I bet I can even get one of them brand spankin' new gov'ment Katrina trailer park units fer free. You guys paid for 'em and nobody is a usin' 'em. they have 145,000 available, I'm sure i cud get jus' one.
Healthnet: I agree with you on every count. So, I have to ask, care to be our nominee if we start an independent third party. No really.
I'm also gonna sneak into Mexico. I'm gonna open a business and not learn the language then get pissed when everyone in my community doesn't speak English.
National Health Care? ? ?
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