Marg,
In the current political atmosphere in the US the talk is about making purchasing private health insurance mandatory, not a one payer system. The goal is insurance for all, not health care for all. For those who can't afford it there are suppose to be credits to help them pay for it. But if you are barely making ends meet, forcing individuals and families to pay thousands of dollars/year for insurance doesn't solve a whole lot. For instance, women my age who have to buy private insurance are paying $8,000 - $9,000/year, if they can get it. There are an awful lot of women my age who can't afford even half that.
Which brings up another issue. Part of the discussion about this mandatory insurance is whether or not insurance companies will be allowed to turn down people whom they consider to be risks. If they are, who will cover those who high risk? A government program? If a government program can cover those who are high risk, why not those who are low risk?
Even many in the medical profession are calling for one payer health care because of the cost to them with the multi payer system, their own cost in providing their employees health insurance, simple fact that they are hogtied by the rules of the many insurance companies and their multitude of plans and the simple fact that they are becoming concerned about their need to determine treatment based on ability to pay.
But this country's deep fear of anything that the opposition is able to label "socialism" and the simple fact that no politition who hopes to be elected will risk supporting anything like that can be labeled that way, we ain't gonna get a one payer system for a very long time.
In the primary elections, two Democrats supported a one payer system -- Dennis and Mike Gravel. And both were considered to be sort of jokes. I'll be you never heard of either of them.
PS-- You really should hear some of the lies that are told about health care in countries that have one payer systems. No matter how much people in those countries say the stories simply aren't true, a lot of people continue to believe them. So while you believe your system, though it has some problems, is far superior to ours, many will never believe you....at least until they find themselves uninsured with health problems or filing for bankruptcy because of health care costs even though they have insurance.
And, fwiw, I have yet to run into someone who lives in a one payer system who would trade that for the American system.
In the current political atmosphere in the US the talk is about making purchasing private health insurance mandatory, not a one payer system. The goal is insurance for all, not health care for all. For those who can't afford it there are suppose to be credits to help them pay for it. But if you are barely making ends meet, forcing individuals and families to pay thousands of dollars/year for insurance doesn't solve a whole lot. For instance, women my age who have to buy private insurance are paying $8,000 - $9,000/year, if they can get it. There are an awful lot of women my age who can't afford even half that.
Which brings up another issue. Part of the discussion about this mandatory insurance is whether or not insurance companies will be allowed to turn down people whom they consider to be risks. If they are, who will cover those who high risk? A government program? If a government program can cover those who are high risk, why not those who are low risk?
Even many in the medical profession are calling for one payer health care because of the cost to them with the multi payer system, their own cost in providing their employees health insurance, simple fact that they are hogtied by the rules of the many insurance companies and their multitude of plans and the simple fact that they are becoming concerned about their need to determine treatment based on ability to pay.
But this country's deep fear of anything that the opposition is able to label "socialism" and the simple fact that no politition who hopes to be elected will risk supporting anything like that can be labeled that way, we ain't gonna get a one payer system for a very long time.
In the primary elections, two Democrats supported a one payer system -- Dennis and Mike Gravel. And both were considered to be sort of jokes. I'll be you never heard of either of them.
PS-- You really should hear some of the lies that are told about health care in countries that have one payer systems. No matter how much people in those countries say the stories simply aren't true, a lot of people continue to believe them. So while you believe your system, though it has some problems, is far superior to ours, many will never believe you....at least until they find themselves uninsured with health problems or filing for bankruptcy because of health care costs even though they have insurance.
And, fwiw, I have yet to run into someone who lives in a one payer system who would trade that for the American system.
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