A Call for a Single Payer Universal Health Care System
As the 2016 Presidential Elections draw near, the topic of much debate is that of healthcare. Some candidates vow for universal healthcare and mandate health insurance for all, while others believe that tax credits and health savings accounts will resolve the current crisis. Consequently, the nation has been divided on which plan to support and move forward with. Some fear universal health care will diminish the quality of care and lead to long waits, while others fear that health savings accounts and tax credits won’t be enough to insure all and will do little to diminish the administrative costs of the current system. Ultimately because healthcare is a basic right that should be guaranteed
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The lack of health care for all in America is fundamentally a moral issue. The United States is the only industrialized nation that does not guarantee health care to all of its citizens. While other countries deem healthcare to be a basic right, the United States treats health care as a privilege (Universal Health Care). Healthcare is a fundamental right that should be guaranteed to all. A radical change in the current system and the implementation of a single payer universal healthcare system can provide healthcare access to all in the United States.
In addition to the dismay of many healthcare professionals, patients, and citizens who are uninsured, several flaws about the current healthcare system show the necessity for reform. The three flaws that exacerbate the current healthcare crisis are: the tax code and tax breaks, the lack of preventable care and adequate care of chronic diseases, and administrative costs. A single payer, universal healthcare system can resolve the major flaws of the
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The chief virtue of industry is efficiency and profit. A single payer universal health care system must be implemented to bring back the compassion in medicine and insure everyone the basic right of healthcare. Access to inclusive healthcare is a human right and we have a moral obligation to assure all citizens this right. Healthcare coverage should not be restricted to employment or income. A single payer universal healthcare system is the most sensible plan because not only does it insure everyone access to healthcare but it also greatly reduces the administrative and non-medical waste that has no benefits to patients. Pursuit of profit and wealth should not be in a field that is meant to care for others; companies and corporations are maximizing on patients’ misfortunes and are therefore shortchanging the quality of care in order to get the most money. This was warned by Maimonides in 1190 AD when he said “Do not allow thirst for profit, ambition for renown, and admiration to interfere with my profession for these are the enemies of truth and can lead me astray in the great task of attending to the welfare of your creatures” (Nelson, Alan).
Despite the fact that a single payer universal healthcare system is not advocated by any current presidential candidate, it is both morally and economically the most sound system. It is the lobbying of