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Last night during CNN’s debate with the members of the Tea Party host Wolf Blitzer asked Ron Paul what he would tell a sick 30-year old guy with no health insurance who had gone into a coma. Ron was trying to tap dance and be diplomatic, but the crowd didn’t have time for that, they suggested it would be the American way to let him die.
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
in this instance, I’m afraid Ron Paul is right. Dude in the example TURNS DOWN insurance to save money every month and thus is without insurance.
while i’m a firm believer in a public option, there is a price to pay for bad decisions on the part of an individual that should not be burdened upon by the rest of society.
now if someone wants insurance but can’t secure a job that offers insurance or can’t get private insurance because of prexisting conditions, then a public “come-one; come-all” option should exist – but it should just be public guarantees for private insurers – not separate public infrastructure.
What you are talking about is what we have now. A very bad system for people who can’t pay and barely adequate system for those who ‘should’ be able to pay.
If the government offered an adequate system for folks whose firms did not why would any firm take on the burden of supplying health care. As it is many firms are placing much more of the burden of health care costs on their employees.
If you ask me the problem is the insurance company (middlemen) that make the process infinitely more expensive with their red tape and predatory policies. Do away with those and costs across the board go down. Most developed nations have a true universal system, why the f*** don’t we? It’s not like where even close to the top in terms of healthy nations.
so then let’s talk about options. making health insurance compulsory?
re: a public option – tons of countries have public options and universal healthcare and make it work – with private firms offering HI and a public option allowing you access to the same services should you be unable to acquire private insurance. how are they making it work?
japan has one of the healthiest populations on the planet – and they do a universal/public option deal. how are they making it work?
insurers are corrupting the process but the problem we have in the US is trying to run health insurance as a for profit business – including giving health insurers the right to turn away potential insurees.
the only solution is socialized medicine (where the goal isn’t primarily making a profit but the health of the patient) – but that won’t happen in the US in my lifetime.
in ur life time or ever.
This a prime example of why working people should be required to have basic insurance because it would ensure someone other than the public will pick up his medical bill tab. Realistically, if this 30 year old were in a coma and next to death, the hospital treating him isn’t going to stop caring for him until he comes up with the money; they’re going to treat him and bill him later.
If states require drivers to have car insurance, then why the heck can’t they require basic health insurance?
the logic is a bit flawed because you don’t actually have to drive. since you don’t have to drive, there is technically no mandate on everyone to have car insurance. there is mandate not on license holders, but on vehicle owners – which is a smaller subset of total license holders.
having a requirement to have medical insurance – would affect a large percentage of the population and a bunch of libertarian states and officials aren’t having that defacto. Making it federal means the supreme court would just knock it down if it even got that far.
thank you.
finally I am not the only person saying that… there IS no president for the US government to force anyone to buy private insurance just because they are US citizens.
if they can make us buy this, what else can they make us buy? You know what happened to the largest health care companies stock when they passed this bill??? It went up.
Why?
Because soon EVERY citizen has to by their stuff.
That’s why the mandate is the only way to make sure everybody pays. He would get service until he either dies or wakes up. Then who pays for it? In this country we don’t put money over people. Ambulance doesn’t show up ask for insurance cards or else they watch you die.
Millions of people know that so they use the ER for health care.
I’m tired of this tea party crap! It’s time to reboot the Black Panthers Party
I completely agree.
Here’s a clip from “Real Time with Bill Maher” that elaborates on that point:
(Skip to the 2:40 mark to see his explanation of “The Donner Party”)
http://youtu.be/CJ-YErKiUVo
THESE HEARTLESS, UNAMERICAN, UNCIVILIZED, UNEDUCATED FOOLS WANT AMERICA TO TURN INTO A THIRD WORLD DICTATORSHIP. CHRISTIAN VALUES MY ASS, JESUS WOULD BE ASHAMED OF ALL REPUBLICANS, ALL TEA PARTY IDIOTS, AND TELL THEM THEY STRONGLY NEED TO STUDY THEIR BIBLES TO GET THE HATE OUT OF THEIR HEARTS.
third world dictatorship? you think smaller government will turn into a dictatorship or do you think a larger government will?
Do you know how many things Bush did that he shouldn’t’ and DIDN’T have the power to do but did anyway? Do you know President Obama wants to override congress and has implied he should on many occasions?
Face it… if you don’t have insurance or don’t want to pay for it then where is the self responsibility to get it? Why am I paying for it? I understand the poor and elderly but come on… there is help and then there is taking advantage of.