Advocates of government-run healthcare held a
rally at Pritchard Park in Asheville, today. One point made in the article is that a government healthcare system will not force people to drop their existing coverage. We’ve debunked this myth repeatedly, but for those who continue not to get it: Government can outcompete the private sector because the private sector has to use limited resources to turn a profit, but government can levy as much as it wants in taxes. It is expected that the national plan will begin with a competitive edge, creating a sliding margin as more people opt to participate in the national plan, widening the gap between private and public costs. Furthermore, if taxpayer dollars will be used to pay for national healthcare, then persons opting for private healthcare will essentially be paying for two plans.
The second point is that the protest’s organizer’s son died for lack of insurance. From the story, it is uncertain how the hospital was able to deny anybody treatment. It is also unclear why a government takeover of the insurance industry is needed, or how it is even preferable to legislative reform that will deregulate the insurance and medical industries to allow more competition, more options, and lower prices.
........As you post your comment, please conform to The Wild West's simple comment policy: we welcome all perspectives, but require that comments be both civil and respectful. If you wouldn't say it to a co-worker in front of your boss, it probably is not civil and respectful. We will delete any comment that fails this test and issue a warning to the poster. A second offense will result in a ban on commenting on this site. In sum, disagreements, arguments even, are welcome; abusive behavior is not. Thanks.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
