What if you were a Republican in a Democratic government?...
Universal Health Care
http://www.youtube.com...#! I accept my opponent's debate and wish him luck! I am against universal healthcare. Argument Control If the United States put into effect a universal healthcare system then they would need a seperate government agency to run it. Think about America today. Name one department that runs efficiently. Social Security Administration? Nope! Department of Energy? Nope! I could go on and on. Face it, if the government even tried to run a healthcare system it would be terrible. If something is simple leave it be! If it's not broken don't fix it! Look at this statement from one of my sources: Think about the Department of Motor Vehicles. This isn't rocket science--they have to keep track of licenses and basic database information for state residents. However, the costs to support the department are enormous, and when was the last time you went to the DMV and didn't have to stand in line? If it can't handle things this simple, how can we expect the government to handle all the complex nuances of the medical system [1]? Private businesses do far better when dealing with healthcare. If they didn't do well then they'd be out of business! If the government ran the healthcare system then they could ration equipment, drugs, and services. Anything could possibly get your healthcare rationed. Lifestyle, age, political ideaology, or how whoever's in power feels could change your healthcare. Any time you have politicians making health care decisions instead of medical or economics professions, you open a whole group of potential rationing issues [1]. For example, an elderly man could receive less healthcare than a man in his mid 30s. Elderly people might not be able to get the treatment they need to stay alive. What if you were a Republican in a Democratic government? Would they deny you healthcare services because of your party affiliation? Liver disease from alcoholism, diabetes from obesity, lung cancer from smoking; Would the government help you or tell you to change your lifestyle? Cost They say that medical costs have risen greatly. Of course they have. There are more advances in the medical field and way more technology to pay for. Cars, computers, houses, everything has gone up in price! Should we make them all apart of the government? Many things we buy today have increased in cost because of the addition of new technology, but allowing the government to intervene so they can supposedly wave their hand and reduce the price is more than wishful thinking, its unrealistic and its impossible to speculate the effect it would have on the nation. People think "free healthcare" is great because it has the word "free" in it. Nothing in the world is free. The people of the U.S would have to pay a great deal of taxes in order to support the government's healthcare. The government has to pay for the healthcare somehow. Like I said, NOTHING is free. So where would they get the money for this? Of course! The American taxpayers! Would it be worth the cutting of multiple funded programs in order to support our universal healthcare? Would funding/regulatory decisions on certain drugs, treatments, research, etc. be decided based on those who give the most political support? In addition, co-pays and deductibles were put in place because there are medical problems that are more minor annoyances than anything else. Eventually there would be a great deal of patients going to the doctors for minor things. Normal people would not go to the doctors for a headace, a cold, or some aches and pains. Why is this? Because there is money involved for every doctor visit. If it's free then why not go? Right? In this case, doctors would spend time on a headache patient who had an appointment sooner than a patient who is in dire need of assistance. Also, healthy people who take care of themselves will have to pay for the burden of those who smoke, are obese, etc via greater taxes. Universal health care would spread the cost of it throughout the nation. Healthy people would be paying the same as unhealthy citizens. Some healthy people don't even feel the need for health insurance since they never go to the doctor. Why should we punish those that live a healthy lifestyle and reward the ones who don't? Personal Freedom If the government runs the healthcare then what's stopping them from taxing cigarettes, fast food, and other items that jeopardize people's health? With government-paid health care, any risky or unhealthy lifestyle will raise the dollar cost to society. People who enjoy a nice alcoholic beverage or a smoke will no longer be able to afford it. Therefore, those businesses would eventually crumble. Personal freedoms would be erased. The government could control what you eat, drink, and do. In conslusion, a government run healthcare system would ruin our country. Government would run your daily life and tell you how to live your life. Your freedom to eat, drink, or smoke will no longer be there. The cost would be immense as seen by my video. How can a government with TRILLIONS of dollars in debt possibly run universal healthcare efficiently? Thank you and thanks to 16kadams for the video! Sources [1] http://www.balancedpolitics.org... [2] http://healthcare.procon.org... [3] http://www.clarksvilleonline.com...