UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE….is very misunderstood and has been spun into some kind of giant monster by the opposition. Putting aside all the political rhetoric that accompanies ALL political discussion, I think it’s important to understand the basics so that people can make their own choice after looking past the smear campaign. For one, we NEED Universal Health Care. BOTH Presidential contenders agree with this and have developed plans to provide it. Mitt actually bragged his states plans in 2008, in fact said Obama should have taken notes. Again putting aside the partisan political mud-slinging there isn’t much difference between Obama’s plan and Romney’s in fact BOTH endorsed the single payer provision that is now being challenged at the Supreme Court. I give Romney credit for recognizing the need for UHC and taking steps to implement it on his own state.
Our privatized system is NOT working. It is an utter disaster. Our per capita medical costs on the entire spectrum of procedures is 3-4 times that of virtually every other industrialized nation in the world. 66% of our bankruptcies are caused by people’s medical costs, and of this, 75% HAVE some form of health coverage. This is disgraceful.
Over 50 million people in this country are without health coverage and this number is DECEPTIVELY low considering there are possibly another 50-75 million people with so called mini-medical plans that provide almost no coverage. These are workers at places like fast-food businesses and large retail operations like Wal-Mart.
People are warned that the penalties for employers not providing insurance under the new plan are devastating, yet 95 percent of all businesses in the country have fewer than 50 employees which leaves them largely unaffected by the new penalty aspects of the law. If you’re a sole owner (sole proprietor, or sole corporate shareholder) your premiums will probably be LOWER for health insurance….NOT higher.
7 reasons why Obama’s Health Care is important.
1. Creates a health insurance exchange. Health insurance reform will create a health insurance exchange that pools small businesses and their employees with millions of other Americans to increase purchasing power and competition in the insurance market (a luxury only large firms currently enjoy).
2. Provides a small business tax credit: On top of the potential savings created by the health insurance exchange, an estimated 3.6 million small businesses nationwide could qualify for a tax credit to make coverage for their employees even more affordable
3. Ends the “hidden tax” on small businesses that provide health insurance. Premiums are high, in part, because of a “hidden insurance tax” of more than $1,000 added onto every family policy that covers the cost of care for those without insurance.
4. Prevents arbitrary premium hikes. In the current health insurance system, small businesses can see their premiums skyrocket if just one or two workers fall ill and accumulate high medical costs. Health insurance reform will prevent insurance discrimination based on health status, meaning that small businesses will no longer be unfairly penalized if a worker falls ill.
5. Creates health insurance stability. Through the health insurance exchange, Americans without access to affordable insurance on the job can compare prices and health plans in order to choose which quality, affordable option is right for them.
6. Protects consumers against insurance market discrimination. Health insurance reform will also prevent insurance companies from denying coverage based on a pre-existing condition or any other health problem, and it will prohibit insurance companies from charging more if someone is sick or a woman.
7. Provides additional options for young adults. For the millions of young adults who work in small businesses, health insurance reform will also allow them to stay on their parents’ employer-based insurance until the age of 26, providing an essential option for coverage.
Beyond The Rhetoric: Why We Need Universal Health Care Now! by Kelly Bowlin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International
