Atlas of USA

Why can anyone feel universal health care is a bad idea:?

Here is some of an article I wrote: This is a very complex issue. The majority of this research came from key word searches, "Us healthcare best in world" or similar google searches. According to Pew Research the top 10% richest people in the country followed by mostly republicans are the only people who think this nation has the best healthcare in the world. Every global or national study seems to demonstrate the oppisite of this. So, where are these rich or republican people obtaining their information I am not sure. The most common article trumpted on their web sites is an article which I discuss at the end: 10 Suprising Facts About American Healthcare. It is on no less than 2,000 of the most outspoken republican sponsored or supported sites. You know how to use google, right? There are tens of thousands of doctors that support and lobby for Universal Healthcare. The number one cause of bankruptcy in the USA is healthcare. We have the most expensive healthcare system in the world. Our system is failing http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/2008-releases/republicans-democrats-disagree-us-health-care-system.html Most Republicans & Rich Think the U.S. Health Care System is the Best in the World http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1293/health-care-public-gives-lukewarm-rating-to-american-system Few See U.S. Health Care as 'Best in the World' July 24, 2009 http://www.pnhp.org/ There are thousands of doctors which support Universal Healthcare in The USA WASHINGTON, DC, 25 October 2006—High-quality health care is achievable at the national level, but the United States lags behind the rest of the industrialized world in providing necessary care for its people, according to a recent report comparing domestic and international adherence to established quality benchmarks. http://dll.umaine.edu/ble/U.S.%20HCweb.pdf Biggest health care study http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_debt Medical debt is an especially notable phenomena in the United States - the US being the world's only developed country not to offer universal health care. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care_in_the_United_States The World Health Organization (WHO), in 2000, ranked the U.S. health care system as the highest in cost, first in responsiveness, 37th in overall performance, and 72nd by overall level of health (among 191 member nations included in the study) A 2008 report by the Commonwealth Fund ranked the United States last in the quality of health care among the 19 compared countries. Roehr, Bob (2008), "Health care in US ranks lowest among developed countries", BMJ 337 (jul21 1): a889, doi:10.1136/bmj.a889, PMID 18644774 http://www.tcf.org/list.asp?type=NC&pubid=1287 The United States spends more of its income on health care than any nation on earth, nearly $6,000 per person per year, more than 15 percent of our total income. In contrast, the countries of the European Monetary Union spend about $2,500 per person per year, less than 10 percent of their income. Here is Dr Scott Atlas's report. You will find these on most major Anti-Universal Healthcare and republican sites. After the article I will provide a 'debunking' http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba649 Medical care in the United States is derided as miserable compared to health care systems in the rest of the developed world. - Debunking 1 http://www.guaranteedhealthcare.org/blog/john-geyman-md-pnhp/2009/08/06/%E2%80%9Cfacts%E2%80%9D-about-american-health-care-revisited - Debunking 2 (by someone who also works at Hoover. And who like Mr.Atlas also is self described as rich and has exceptional healthcare)http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/opinion/columnists/guests/s_513009.html - LOL? To Richard C: millions of illegal immigrants who had little or no medical care before coming here. They hit those emergency rooms for anything from a cold up to and including cancer. LOL? How racist and pathetic can you get. I have no desire to be treated by a doctor who is motivated by income. Tens of millions of people in this nation do a good job because they are passionate about it. Their jobs are as important and more dangerous than doctors: Police, Army/Navy/Marines, EMTs or Firemen. Let me add I am underpaid for what I do. Yet, this does not effect my ability to do my job as effectively or more effectively as a person who makes more. I am still really stuck on those racist comments though. Even if 70% of the uninsured people were Mexican that still leaves 30% you spit on. No one ever said anyone was turned away from the Emergency Room. Emergency room visits are intended not as a diagnose or treatment of the core problem. Rather they are to fix the situation to such a degree where you can go back home. I am still floored about such blatant racism. We have a black president and the person who now sits on the highest throne of the court is technically one of these Mexicans you seem to hate,

Public Comments

1. Whether we have universal health care or not, healthcare will cost us money. When the government gets involved, it will say who can and cannot get treated and for what diseases. There are some people who do not trust the government to have this kind of power over them. With that said, our current health system does not adequately take care of everyone. But do not expect a panacea if universal health care gets passed. There will be limitations especially for the elderly. Even in European countries, once you become older they stop giving costly services like heart transplants.
2. Much noise has been made about the failing system in Canada. More noise than facts IMO.. I break my leg, I get rushed to hospital and wham bam thank you ma'am - it is taken care of. They didn't check my bank account to see if I have any money....or refuse me at the door of the hospital. The bill I received after everything was done and I was let go home was $15 from the ambulance service....several months later. No cost to me for surgery, no cost to me for the extra days I had to spend in a hospital bed (for the fact that I had a complication because the break was in the hip I had a fat embolii which coated my lungs so I was in respiratory distress and had to be put on oxygen and placed in critical care for 10 days until the problem passed, and then I could be released from the hospital to go home and heal the breakage(which takes6-8 weeks); no costs for the anathesia or other anti-pain meds(or anti-inflamitory's) that were given to me while in the hospital....no charge for the room or the food while I was there. How long did I have to wait in line? There was no line. The lines that make the headlines is for extra procedures like a nose job or a boob enlargement, fat sucktology, or a kneecap or hip replacement, whatever. And those patients clog beds. Where they could have gone on a diet and exercised more, stop jumping without a bungee cord, don't look in the mirror, and use tissue for filler. But we all pay for medical insurance. Not much as it is for "just in case". And we all will visit the doctor or hospital sooner or later. A place we would rather avoid because it is not a hotel. Some older people think it is, and make regular appearances there every winter because they can't take care of themselves--so they clog up beds unneccessarily. But it is heated and they get 3 meals a day and they have people to talk to. Definitely there is some holes. Another hole is the subsidized cost of prescription medicines. Much lower in cost that in the U.S. . They would be even cheaper if those from the US would not come to Canada and take home a suitcase full of it. Canadians don't misuse it because it is available to them. Canadians pay more for consumables because of the additional taxes compared to the US....but some of those taxes pay for the medical services....which "we all" don't use. The more medicine advances forward the more people hate about their bodies or outright damage them...thinking "it can be fixed". A "sales pitch" if ever I heard one. And who is selling it? Doctors looking for money(after all, you don't need them once you are dead). It is pretty well accepted that we die of old age at 70 years(some go on farther than that 80,90,100---why we don't know-genes or liquor). If a person is aged, what would the purpose be in giving them a new heart if the other failed? The other organs in the body are that age as well so they must be near the failing time----planning to replace them all? (Only if you want to be a guinea pig.) The heart transplant procedure for the old patient requires surgeons and others and time. There are young people that may require the same because of a car accident.....who, once they are repaired can function again and pay taxes (into the system) to keep it going. Old people don't contribute anymore in that regard. The body is worn out. It is a harsh reality but a fact. We all gotta go.(up to this point in life that is a truism). With the increase costs of doctors, nurses, new medicines, equipment and the need for more beds (because of increased demand this was bound to happen as the baby boomers reach maturity). Corners can be cut at administration(because the helpers helpers helper does not need another helper). These are all decent paying positions that do nothing in the actual healing of the body. But this is a government unto itself (so this cancer is difficult to remove.) Remove this and there is more money for more doctors and beds.
3. As soon as you start trying to blame Republicans for all the ills in the health care industry you lose the argument. To argue that there are problems in the US health care system therefore the ONLY way to fix it is by forcing socialized medicine on the American people is the faulty dilemma fallacy. There are many ways to solve health care. You fail to point out that 85% of Americans in a recent survey rated their health care as excellent or good. The objection of many Americans, Republican, Democrat, and Independent, is that the proposed House Bill gives too much power to the Federal Government. It is rife with probabilities of rationed care and long waits for care. Let's take time to develop a real solution rather than the force-feeding pablum of the current proposals.
4. 1) Universal Health Care denies funamental liberty to many citizens. It doesnt give them choice in their health care decisions. . In a free-market system, on the other hand, the citizens’ right to choose will allow market selection to proceed unhindered: the best medicines and hospitals will be popular, and hence companies and doctors will have an economic incentive to provide the best care at the lowest rates. This also allows the individual liberty and autonomy: he is able to choose what care he receives, and thus a free-market system is most just in that the citizen is allowed the right to choose, enabling market economics and helping the best healthcare companies prosper and provide care to more and more people. 2) Effectively creates a welfare state, causing people to be dependent on the state. They become innefficent. 3) IT RUINS COMPETTITIVE ECONOMICS AND DESTROYS INNOVATION According to Wyatt M. Rogers, President of III Sigma Company, “Innovation is encouraged in capitalism by the inherent liberty to experiment with new ideas. The introduction of new products and services often holds promise of establishing new markets or larger market share while improved production methods may reduce costs and enhance returns on investment.” With Universal Health Care, there is no reason to innovate, the government holds a monopoly. I know our health care system has flaws, but is it really that bad? Hillary Clinton just this past weekend in an interview with George Stephanopolous said that she would be willing to garnish every American’s paycheck to put her socialist health care system into effect. This means that she would claim every American’s hard earned dollars to create a government run health care system. This goes to show under a second Clinton presidency your money isn’t yours. It’s just in your possession until the government claims it. If she really was pro-choice in health decisions you would think she would allow Americans the free-will to exempt out of her plan. There are two very scary thoughts about the notion of socializing health care. Liberals are trying to take over a sector of our economy that is 15.5 percent of our GDP. Because less than 1.5 percent of Americans don’t have health insurance, liberals are devising a plan to take over 1/7 of our entire economy. I don’t trust the government running my DMV much less my health care decisions. The second scary thought is that we currently have the best health care system in the world, and we might lose it. When Europeans need a surgery, do they get in the three month waiting line for a surgery? No, they get in the 13 hour waiting line for a flight here to have their surgery. Sure our system has flaws. But there are other solutions. For one thing, increase the number of doctors able to graduate with medical degrees. That quota hasn’t increased since the early 1900s, while our national population has multiplied. Other solutions include tort reform to lessen the costs of malpractice insurance. Another idea is to allow registered nurses be allowed to perform minor surgeries, they already have the knowledge to do it. Lastly, there should be a trade agreement reached with Canada so pharmaceuticals in America will be allowed to purchase and sell Canadian prescription drugs. If the cost of health care can become cheaper and more affordable, the government would be able to expand their current programs to encompass even more poor, uninsured Americans without requiring additional funds. And with more affordable health care, the uninsured wealthy might actually find health care to be a bargain and buy an insurance plan.
5. I concur with you.Our health system is severely lacking!I just graduated from taking "Medical Insuance Billing and Coding" and I was appalled at the things I found out. I am a 24/7 care provider for 2 people,one of whom I live with.My friend A lives in her own home and I do her shopping and general errands for her:she is dis-abled and on tricare/medicare.My friend I live with and care for is a disabled vet and is covered through the VA. Being their care provider I have run into some BIG brick walls at times. Thanks to our lovely friends in legislature. The arguments I have had on their behalves with just their inept pharmacists would curl your hair.I even went as far as calling JACHO on one pharmacy( THEY WERE ONLY FILLING HALF A "SCRIPT AND BILLING FOR THE WHOLE THING).And who pays for these robbers?We do!I beleive that to set things right,all elected offcials in the United states should take a 50% cut in pay, at least every 2 yrs.and these monies go to a "Health Coverage Plan Fund".What do you think?
6. Take a deep breath and then read this. The problem with the sites and statistics is that they only show part of the picture that they want you to see. What is not shown there is that no one is turned away from any emergency room in this country. That drives up the negative statistics. Where do most of those statistics come from well it happens to be that there are millions of illegal immigrants who had little or no medical care before coming here. They hit those emergency rooms for anything from a cold up to and including cancer. Take a look at what the city of Los Angles has to pay monthly! Those figures would ruin most countries. Then there are the other forty nine states and there statistics and then what you have is one large medical nightmare. So take those statictics out and watch what happens to our medical statistics. We would be up there on top but no one takes the time or wants to do those. Next try talking to the people in Canada of Great Britain about their medical care. Do they like the idea that they are not able to get some drugs because they cost too much or that they are too old to get a procedure done? Seems that they are always crossing into this country to get a procedure done on that day or within a day or two that they would have to wait months to years or be denied. Is that what you want for your mother or father or perhaps that is just what you want for yourself and family. You talk about republicans but not the democrates. Take a look at the funding of that party. You will find a lot of money has been filtered into that party from the trial lawyers associtations. Millions of dollars to stop any chance at stopping malpractice suits or limiting awards. They are the kinds of frivilous law suits knowing that insurance companies find it easier to negotiate a settlement than to drag the case out. Who pays for that? We all do! Stop that aspect and the rates of insurance would drop. Go back to 1963 and you will find the Hill-Burton act. That is the start of all of this mess and who put that in? Guess your friendly democratic party. Up to that point you would go to the doctor and get seen and pay a small fee. Then things started to get bad and rates soon escalated. The only ones getting rich on these practices were the insurance companies not the healthcare providers. So if you like to stand in lines that make buying a concert ticket look small then be for universal healthcare. But just remember that your parents and family are also standing in that line. Also remember that we have the best doctors and medical services in the world and that would change almost overnight if the incentive for making money would stop. Why work your tail off to get a salary instead of the ability to make what you are worth. No one is getting on the backs of actors, athletes, and lawyers about what they are making and they are making a lot more than medical people! Who is more deserving a doctor that will save your life or some athlete that can catch a ball?
7. balooga whales.