Universal Healthcare: turn your head to the left and cough

School is in its third week and I’m again writing for my university’s newspaper. I think that I will also blog my columns here for you all to enjoy.

Universal Healthcare: turn your head to the left and cough

Is it 2009 yet? I’m already sick of presidential politics.

I wish Hillary, Rudy and Mitt would just leave me alone, but alas, I can’t get away. Political issues are everywhere – especially health care. It’s been even worse in the past few days, as the Democrats have recently unveiled their universal health care plans. Like most policy proposals, they’re pretty complicated and can get confusing.

Luckily, however, universal health care also raises simpler questions.

First, if you’re unaware, here’s an extremely abbreviated Intro to Universal Health care. "Universal health care" is just that. It means guaranteeing all citizens medical care through a government-operated health system. In order to fund such a program, everyone would pay taxes into a big pot o’ money. This money would then be redistributed to sick people as needed. Most proponents of this plan consider health care a right.

Sounds okay, right? Not when you look closer.

The first problem is the assumption that health care is a right. Is it? I don’t think so. The Constitution guarantees many rights, like life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, as you recall from Government 101.

But let’s contemplate these rights. Basically, they’re rights to action. For example, does the right to life mean you should expect your roommate to buy you life-sustaining Domino’s pizza and Coke? No. It means you have the right to earn money to buy your own greasy pizza and fattening soda, and nobody can stop you unless you break the law.

That’s a major problem with universal health care.

Thousands of Americans don’t buy health insurance because they’re already healthy and have higher financial priorities, like student loan payments. Under universal health care, that wouldn’t matter; they’d pay the same hefty tax as, say, obese smokers. Who do you think is going to need more medical care?

What’s worse, these healthy people may be forced to buy health insurance they don’t need. They would waste their already tight incomes on unwanted insurance, on top of taxes, in order to help the government cover its pledge to provide care to all. You see, it’s a noble idea, but its not entirely feasible. Plus, Americans simply shouldn’t be forced to be responsible for their neighbors’ health.

Another big problem with our current health care system is price. Many people think its is overpriced because the current free market system failed. Well, that’s not entirely accurate because our system isn’t a truly free market. In reality, it’s profoundly regulated by Uncle Sam. In fact, about 65 percent of money spent on health care already passes through government hands.

Interestingly, proof that free market health care works lies within our own failed system. In this small market, people generally spend their own money, have the ability to compare prices, and rarely use middlemen. Any ideas?

It’s plastic surgery. Thank you, Pamela Anderson.

During the 90s, cosmetic surgery prices decreased while technology advanced. Both the decrease in price and increase in technology were due to competition. Unfortunately, this wouldn’t exist under universal health care, as the government would be in charge.

Now, I discussed only two universal health care issues; volumes have been written on the subject. Regardless, it’s clear universal health care is risky. Instead, we should eliminate the excessive government regulations that cost patients hundreds of billions of dollars each year. If we do, we might have extra cash for that greasy pizza and soda.