Only one country in the developed world would allow a citizen to die for lack of money and/or health insurance.
Only one country in the developed world ties the availability of health care to the content of one’s wallet.
Only one country in the developed world doesn’t consider health care to be a basic human right.
Only one country in the developed world has a class of politicians dedicated to maintaining the current “corporations first” status quo when it comes to basic health care.
Only one country in the developed world considers its Third World health care delivery system to be the finest health care system the world has to offer.
So much for “American Exceptionalism,” eh?
You might think that those in Congress who equate universal health care with socialism would be embarrassed that Cyprus, Portugal, and Singapore provide better health care coverage to their citizens than American does. That might be true if those who’ve opposed health care reform since Day One weren’t governed by a supremely self-interested mantra:
“I got mine. You can damned well get your own.”
It seems the social contract is a quaint, outdated concept best left for losers and Liberals who would enable those unwilling to do for themselves because they know the government will provide for their basic needs.
While other developed countries look out for their citizens and provide everyone with at least a basic level of health care, American policymakers still believe that the best, most efficient health care system is survival of the fittest and most affluent.
Sometimes I’m ashamed to be an American. It’s not that I don’t love my country, but I hate the constant push and pull between the haves and the have-nots. When you consider that the haves possess not only money but political power, the level of selfishness and self-interest extant on our shores is truly embarrassing.
Call me naive, but I can’t help thinking that we really should be better than this. Universal health care isn’t socialism, nor is it Big Government usurping our freedom and liberty. It’s ensuring that every American has access to a basic level of health care. It’s about creating a health care system that recognizes the basic humanity of all Americans and recognizes that using emergency rooms for general health care delivery is a horribly expensive and inefficient model. Even if you don’t buy my “basic humanity” argument, our current health care delivery system is as untenable as it is inefficient from a purely economic standpoint. We could save money and create efficiencies with a single payer system, but the people who scream “SOCIALISM!!!” whenever the topic is broached makes having a rational conversation impossible…and so nothing changes. Those who profit under the current system will continue to enjoy the status quo…because in the end it’s far less about people than profit.
We really should be better than this.
