U.S. Must Have Universal Health Care

Published: Fri 27 Nov 2009

Mary Banks

The arguments from people opposed to universal health care are enough to make anyone sick. They are trying to use tactics ranging from expense to fear in an effort to convince the opposition it's wrong. But what's really wrong with making sure everyone in the United States has a chance to live as long a life as possible?

The number of people who are uninsured in this nation is staggering. Estimates say that more than 45 million Americans have no insurance. Granted, the number includes people who are in this country illegally. But they are the minority. The vast majority are U.S. citizens, so it makes sense to ensure the population of the global superpower stays in the best condition possible.

One of the key reasons so many citizens are uninsured is the expense. Businesses more and more are scaling back on paying for employee health benefits. While former employees have the chance to continue their coverage through COBRA, the catch is they have to figure out how to pay all coverage costs when their income potentially plunges to zero. For individuals who buy their own policies, their purchasing power shrinks because they can't bargain as a large company can.

With medical services made available at no cost to the patient, that person can take advantage of preventative medicine measures or be diagnosed and treated in the early stages of an illness so the condition doesn't get worse. Something as basic as an annual physical is skipped by many people because of the expense.

Sometimes people with pre-existing medical conditions cannot get the coverage they need to stay as healthy as possible. With universal coverage, they will not be turned down when they want to get new coverage.

For medical professionals, the system will allow them to get back to what they were trained to do: heal patients. They no longer will have to spend time worrying about following the myriad guidelines established by insurance companies so reimbursement for services can occur. The mountains of paperwork, the long waits for treatment approvals, the submission of forms - all of that hassle would disappear.

Those physicians considering quitting their practices because of the issues related to malpractice liability can continue to do what they enjoy without worry. Of course, lawyers may not like this.

A worthwhile side effect would be the development of a centralized database of medical information. If someone moves, the new physician doesn't have to start from scratch when trying to determine the best care for the new patient. After checking the database, the diagnosis and treatment become easier, helping the patient heal faster.

There are a number of benefits with universal health care. We are overdue as a nation to have the best health care system in the world being used to its potential.