Why do some people think free healthcare is bad?

[Agayek]

3. The armed services, retired persons, and all members of the government have state funded health care. Seems to be doing a damn good job. The government also manages to provide roads, police, fire, water, electricity, gas, and other amenities just fine. But somehow health care is just too complicated for people to figure out.

I have to respond to this one. My best friend is a Marine, and according to him, the military doctors are total quacks. They tend to just throw advil at the problem until it goes away.

 

[Orcboyphil]

What baffles me is how people in the US are saying "free" healthcare would make us socialist or something. Did it make the UK socialist? Did it make Canada socialist? No? Hmm, must be something they're missing in that logic, then.

Compared to the Americans where damn well communists! But then were on the whole healthier and happier, better Red than Dead I say.

 

[Biosophilogical]

Socialized health care turns doctors into government employees. Without the carrot on the stick, how the heck are we supposed to keep the best doctors in the world?

Why have 'the best doctors' if all those people who need them can't afford them? That'd be like being able to solve world hunger but you only let the rich and obese demographic have access to the solution (and it isn't even one of those 'copy it and sell it to the hungry' solutions, it's one of those 'you copy it and I'll hunt you down, destroy your life emotionally and financially, watch you spiral into depression before finally granting you the mercy of death, and all the while I'll be destroying every copy of the solution but mine' solutions).

 

[Orcboyphil]

Socialized health care turns doctors into government employees. Without the carrot on the stick, how the heck are we supposed to keep the best doctors in the world?

Is this the same way as you have the "hardiest working" workers in the world. I would love to see your proof that American doctors are better than say German or French doctors rather than just your hyperboyle.

 

[PrimoThePro]

And you will pay twice as much in tax.

You could go your entire life without needing healthcare, or, more likely, use it very little, but you would still spend hundreds of thousands on healthcare for others.

That's fine. If someone wants to pay someone else's bill - fantastic.

Should it be forced through tax? Hell no.

You sound like my dad, who also is against Universal Healthcare, which is cool, your opinion, but I will tell you what I told him. I am fine with that option. If my money can go to helping people then good. It's better then if it were to go to a war I do not want to see happening. Me being me, I will help others gladly in the off chance that when I need help, they will help me in return.

 

[BENZOOKA]

Do you want to pay for it?

Money has to come from somewhere.

And if you do, then please go to a hospital and start handing out cash - some people need it real bad.

As harsh as that sounds, it is simply how it is. Life isn't perfect.

I'm a Finn, and it works alright in here.

The current system, wherever, is basically never the only one it can be.

Call me crazy, but it seems rather abhorrent to refuse to give medical help for people who don't have that much money. Especially when it can be the other way around.

 

[nohorsetown]

Give the world a hug! =D Your 999billion is my 10 cents a dollar. Lovey love love ya brother. How's the healin'? Of course I can spare some change. Feels like socializin'. Can you dig it?

"Oh, how shall my rich-ass get by on only 50% of my incredible income?!": so spake the poor-in-spirit.

Maybe?

I dunno; I'd spare a dime.

But altogether, at the same time, let's make smarter health decisions for our selves, cuz that's likely to be the real solution..

 

[D64nz]

I live in a country with free health care (New Zealand) and it doesnt cost diddly when spread over the whole population. 95% of your life is spent out of hospitals, but if your always paying a little bit via taxes towards it your don't notice it. But for those times I wreak myself, like a nasty motorcycle accident 6 years ago where I broke both wrists, it was covered. I'd be fucked at the time if I'd had to fork out for that, but in my working life I'll easily pay back that money and more in taxes so it all evens out.

Its in any countrys best interest to keep its working population able to work, end of story.

 

[Rainforce]

Life isn't fair and you need to accept that.

indeed, Life isn't fair. but we dont talk about life, but the poeple that surround us. they can. thats the difference.

 

[D64nz]

Do you want to pay for it?

Money has to come from somewhere.

And if you do, then please go to a hospital and start handing out cash - some people need it real bad.

As harsh as that sounds, it is simply how it is. Life isn't perfect.

I'm a Finn, and it works alright in here.

The current system, wherever, is basically never the only one it can be.

Call me crazy, but it seems rather abhorrent to refuse to give medical help for people who don't have that much money. Especially when it can be the other way around.

Well put.
Lets say your Donald Trump just after one of your business ventures went toes up and then you had a serious accident. With proper healthcare you'd be back in the game and earning money again shortly, and without it you'd be just another hobo for the rest of your life because for that one time you couldnt get yourself mended and go on with life. Its short term thinking vs long term thinking.

 

[Alloflifedecays]

Okay, I know that this is going to be a contentious issue with Americans, so listen up. There's a reason why I would never ever move the the US, and that is because you don't have free universal healthcare. I've lived in the UK all my life, which means I have had great free healthcare all my life, and I wouldn't change it for anything. Seriously, that puts the US below every other country in the western world (because WE ALL HAVE IT EXCEPT YOU). I wouldn't feel safe with my health in the hands of either some insurance company whose bottom line is about profit, not helping people, and who will do whatever they can to screw me out of the money, or doctors who're so mercenary they'll perform unneccesary tests (If your doctor gives you a CT scan and not an MRI scan, or both, HE'S A QUACK) just to drive your bill up and cash in.

I don't care about the taxes. I don't care about big government (Which, by the way, is kinda underrated). Because I pay £7 for any medication I need. I get to see a doctor in any hospital (no in-network crap here) and get seen, and then I can walk out and not have to sell my car in order to pay for it, or worry about insurance premiums. That is worth all the stuff you've been told are downsides.

 

[D64nz]

Ok the best bet for people wondering about this still, is check out the movie called 'The Bucket List'. It shows both sides of this argument, ie saving money, and what money spent could do.

 

[D64nz]

Okay, I know that this is going to be a contentious issue with Americans, so listen up. There's a reason why I would never ever move the the US, and that is because you don't have free universal healthcare. I've lived in the UK all my life, which means I have had great free healthcare all my life, and I wouldn't change it for anything. Seriously, that puts the US below every other country in the western world (because WE ALL HAVE IT EXCEPT YOU). I wouldn't feel safe with my health in the hands of either some insurance company whose bottom line is about profit, not helping people, and who will do whatever they can to screw me out of the money, or doctors who're so mercenary they'll perform unneccesary tests (If your doctor gives you a CT scan and not an MRI scan, or both, HE'S A QUACK) just to drive your bill up and cash in.

I don't care about the taxes. I don't care about big government (Which, by the way, is kinda underrated). Because I pay £7 for any medication I need. I get to see a doctor in any hospital (no in-network crap here) and get seen, and then I can walk out and not have to sell my car in order to pay for it, or worry about insurance premiums. That is worth all the stuff you've been told are downsides.

Ahmen! You yanks gotta ask how you let healthcare ever go to the private sector in the first place. Thats just fucked up

 

[Madara XIII]

Do you want to pay for it?

Money has to come from somewhere.

And if you do, them go to a hospital and start handing out cash.

ninja'd

but yeah and there are a few problems with it

Who gets it?
Whats it cover?
How much will it cost(in taxes)?
will it actually fix anything?

Double Ninja'd!!! In my view it's a service and you gotta pay for a service. Mind you that no one should be denied treatment, but you eventually have to pay it.

 

[ShadowsofHope]

Curiously, there is a surge of Americans in this thread that believe since the U.S. government has time and time again proven to be less than effective, every other countries government is the exact same way as well and you should never trust them with anything. Talk about misanthropic generalizations, people?

And "free" health care is somewhat of a false denominator. Universal health care is based on a small percentage of tax money from one's earnings per month in which is gathered by the government to pay for really, really cheap basic health care for everyone in the country. Of course, the system is not perfect, and mishaps happen in it like everything else, but some of the "horror" stories I tend to hear from Americans on our Canadian system are nothing more than over sensationalized "Socialist" scaremongering, if anything.

Quite frankly, if I'm going to be paying taxes to my government, I'm going to damned well want it to be going towards something productive that not only helps me, but my community through my contributions in the end as well. Universal health care more often than less fits that bill, and only the least one can do while living in a society in which the very definition of the term is a community that looks after one another for the greater good of the many.

It's basically a matter of what you are willing to sacrifice in terms of self-fulfillment for the greater whole of society, or what you are not willing to sacrifice for it, in the end.

 

[D64nz]

45 cents of every dollar we're taxed goes to military expenditures, and people get upset that some of their taxes may go to help people who can't afford health care.

We just have some very bizarre priorities as a nation, that's all. We're so obsessed with maintaining our status as a military super power that we forgot its also important to succeed in education, economy, and quality of life.

You have to remember that that is the decision of politicians, not citizens. Most citizens aren't exactly thrilled with the public image of the US, and would prefer if there was a scaling back of the military if only to improve our standing with other countries. Politicians on the other hand see the military as this magic wand that stimulates the economy. No joke, if you downscaled the military industrial complex to levels comparable of other western nations, not only government expenditures would lower. It's a broken spiral, but it's a sad fact that spending money on the military pretty much equates to spending money on the economy, while spending money on schools doesn't.

The government has actually tried to fix the issues with government run healthcare programs in the past, but all they can seem to manage is making the money pit larger while the percentage of people they are helping isn't exactly increasing drastically. I'd say we need less monkeys in congress, but they'd probably replace them with birds, squirrels, or those hideous duck/beaver creatures.

So well put. From an outsider your very right, and I think they put is best in the movie lions for Lambs when they made the point..

when 9/11 came about we (other western nations) were all on your side. But since that time, the decisions of your leaders had chewed that up and now your more like the bully of the playground thats got no lunch money. I know a few americians personally and I know that the decisons of the leaders don't reflect what they would like, so I can give the averge joe yank the benefit of the doubt, but you gotta get to a point when you say no more.

But the other point he made is also very true. The military is a large industry for the US and to cut that would impact many lives. The scale of spending it obsurd and I think the government has found itself trapped by that. But the longer it keeps going, the worse it's gonna be once it finally hits the wall, which at some stage it has too and will hit that wall.

 

[James13v]

The reason the US hasn't got free healthcare only seems to be because a lot of people don't understand it. We have perfectly working free healthcare in Australia... Not to mention Canada and a lot of European and South American nations have insanely good healthcare systems.

The US's residual fear of socialism from the cold war/general uber-capitalist system are the things uselessly standing in the way of it in my opinion.

 

[dark-amon]

I think some people think it's a bad thing because there are still alot of people alive who let their brain rot away in the cold war and consider free health care as communism. Wich makes me want to streilize every teaparty-member to ensure that they cannot litter any more brats to the world.