SICK HEALTH CARE AND RICH POOR PEOPLE

Though I've belted you and flayed you,
By the livin' Gawd that made you,
You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din!

The Democrats want to push comprehensive medical insurance forward as a campaign issue for 2008. I have heard this many times before and most likely anyone elected would never get anything done about it anyways, but it is a good issue for sound bites and it keeps the socialist’s hopes for more government freebies alive. Recently we have heard about the “huge” poverty issue in today’s America; this is tied into the medical insurance “crisis”. So, how big is poverty in America?

“The following are facts about persons defined as "poor" by the Census Bureau, taken from various government reports:

Forty-six percent of all poor households actually own their own homes. The average home owned by persons classified as poor by the Census Bureau is a three-bedroom house with one-and-a-half baths, a garage, and a porch or patio.

Seventy-six percent of poor households have air conditioning. By contrast, 30 years ago, only 36 percent of the entire U.S. population enjoyed air conditioning.

Only 6 percent of poor households are overcrowded. More than two-thirds have more than two rooms per person.

The average poor American has more living space than the average individual living in Paris, London, Vienna, Athens, and other cities throughout Europe. (These comparisons are to the average citizens in foreign countries, not to those classified as poor.)

Nearly three-quarters of poor households own a car; 30 percent own two or more cars.

Ninety-seven percent of poor households have a color television; over half own two or more color televisions.

Seventy-eight percent have a VCR or DVD player; 62 percent have cable or satellite TV reception.

Seventy-three percent own microwave ovens, more than half have a stereo, and a third have an automatic dishwasher.”- The Heritage Foundation.

The poverty issue is merely a diversion from the real problems that plague our nation and a smoke screen used to cover the fact that they have no answers for these problems.
So, what about health insurance?

“Nearly 47 million Americans, or 16 percent of the population, were without health insurance in 2005, the latest government data available”- The National Coalition on Health Care

The Democrats say health care is a “right” but where in the Constitution is that right put forth? No where. There isn’t even the slightest hint or the merest mention of it anywhere in there. Has any politician of any ilk addressed the real issue of health care which by the way, isn’t insurance, but the entire system that is too confusing, to expensive and out of control? Nope, their ideas range from laws mandating people buy insurance to total government control of the health care system.

What needs to happen is a return to commonsense. First, capitalism and competition are the only two things that will make health care manageable and affordable. Laws need to be passed to keep the malpractice insurance affordable for doctors. Tort reform limiting the amount a doctor can be sued for would start the process.

Here is an example of a system that would help solve the problem;

Any doctor that treated a patient and billed them less then $1000.00 could only be sued for five-thousand dollars. This would encourage the doctors to keep their prices lower and would lower their insurance premiums. Health insurance would only pay for bills higher than one thousand dollars but that would also make the doctor more liable in a civil case. Still, there needs to be a ceiling for all malpractice suits for all damages.

Doctors need to be encouraged to treat patients rather then just refer them. Because a person has an ear ache it doesn’t mean they have to see an ear specialist. The doctors that treat patients and save them money by not just pushing that patient to some other doctor will be more desired as a physician thus encouraging competition. People will seek the best doctor at the lowest price if they are forced to personally pay the costs up to one thousand dollars. If a physician doesn’t have to worry about being sued to the extent of losing everything, he will be more willing to actually treat a patient.

There should be a system in place for the neediest of Americans who are unable to pay for medical care but this can’t become a huge government give-away that will spiral out of control and cause inflation in medical bills. Another government bureaucracy controlling health care would be a disaster. Less government involvement rather then more is the solution. Do you want the same people who work at the department of motor vehicles running your health care?

More personal responsibility for ones health care costs, lower insurance premiums for both the patients and the doctors and common sense in dealing with treatments would repair a medical system that is superior to any other in the world but far too costly. Now all we have to do is get past the insurance lobbyists, the tort lawyer lobbyists and the greedy politicians willing to take donations from anyone with enough money and we can fix this system.