Colonnade

Issue date: 2/8/08 Section: Opinion

     There is a threat to our national security that is flying under the radar. The threat that I’m talking about has nothing to do with Al Qaeda or other Islamic Terrorists. The threat is actually being perpetrated by Americans who have taken an oath to protect the Constitution of the United States.
     Who am I talking about? The answer is liberals on both the Republican side and Democratic side. These liberals believe there is an inherent right in the Constitution to medical care. They like to call it “free” health care, but if you look at it, their health care comes at a dangerous cost.
     I am not arguing that these misinformed liberals are terrorists. I know that they don’t mean to purposely harm the American public, and I’m sure they believe that in Karl Marx’s utopic Communist system that this is actually a good idea. Hopefully they’ll read this article or just study the basic facts and they will see their plan is unneeded and possibly destructive to every American.
     We should cover the background of the current state of health care first. In 2004 health care was a 1.79 trillion dollar industry which is about 15.5 percent of the national GDP and also roughly 1/6 of our nation debt. There was average spending of $6,167 per person on health care related costs in 2004. I wouldn’t be surprised if that has gone up in recent years.
     The Census Bureau states that there are 46.577 million people in the United States without health care. That seems like a lot. But who makes up that astoundingly large number? The first 9.487 million are what liberals like to call undocumented workers, and what the law likes to call illegal aliens.
     What we’re left with is about 37 million American citizens that are uninsured. That still seems like a lot, especially in the richest country on Earth. However, not all Americans are uninsured because of poverty. There are 8.3 million Americans that are uninsured that make between 50 and 75 thousand dollars. At even the low end of $50,000 an individual could certainly afford health insurance if they so chose. But they’d rather spend it on better vacations, a bigger TV, maybe even a better house and that is their decision. But someone who earns above $75,000 would certainly buy health insurance, right?   That’s not what the facts say. There are 8.74 million Americans that earn above $75,000 per year and still decide not to buy health insurance. And in America they should have that freedom even if we consider it irresponsible.
     Out of 37 million uninsured Americans, 17 million are easily wealthy enough to afford it. That leaves us with roughly 20 million uninsured Americans that make below $50,000. Many of these uninsured Americans actually qualify for programs like Medicare or Medicaid but never take the time to sign up, or don’t realize they are eligible to sign up. Taking this into account, the liberal non-profit group, Kaiser Family Foundation, finds that only about 8.2 million uninsured Americans earn below $50,000 and don’t qualify for government programs.   That means throughout America less than 3 percent of   Americans can’t afford medical insurance and don’t qualify for  any current government programs. And it’s not even that bad. The Congressional Budget Office reports that 45 percent of the 8.2 million that fall through the cracks will be uninsured for four months or less. In reality, less than 1.5 percent of all American citizens will go without insurance for longer than 4 months. This goes to show that the free market will correct itself, even without government intervention.
     I know our health care system has flaws, but is it really that bad? Hillary Clinton just this past weekend in an interview with George Stephanopolous said that she would be willing to garnish every American’s paycheck to put her socialist health care system into effect. This means that she would claim every American’s hard earned dollars to create a government run health care system. This goes to show under a second Clinton presidency your money isn’t yours. It’s just in your possession until the government claims it. If she really was pro-choice in health decisions you would think she would allow Americans the free-will to exempt out of her plan.
     There are two very scary thoughts about the notion of socializing health care. Liberals are trying to take over a sector of our economy that is 15.5 percent of our GDP. Because less than 1.5 percent of Americans don’t have health insurance, liberals are devising a plan to take over 1/7 of our entire economy. I don’t trust the government running my DMV much less my health care decisions.
     The second scary thought is that we currently have the best health care system in the world, and we might lose it. When Europeans need a surgery, do they get in the three month waiting line for a surgery? No, they get in the 13 hour waiting line for a flight here to have their surgery. Sure our system has flaws. But there are other solutions.
     For one thing, increase the number of doctors able to graduate with medical degrees. That quota hasn’t increased since the early 1900s, while our national population has multiplied.    Other solutions include tort reform to lessen the costs of malpractice insurance. Another idea is to allow registered nurses be allowed to perform minor surgeries, they already have the knowledge to do it. Lastly, there should be a trade agreement reached with Canada so pharmaceuticals in America will be allowed to purchase and sell Canadian prescription drugs.
     If the cost of health care can become cheaper and more affordable, the government would be able to expand their current programs to encompass even more poor, uninsured Americans without requiring additional funds. And with more affordable health care, the uninsured wealthy might actually find health care to be a bargain and buy an insurance plan.
     Liberals reading this probably aren’t too scared by the idea of government run health care. So, just to send a shock wave through you: imagine George Bush running your health care plan.
Yeah, I thought so.



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