Do We Nationalize or Subsidize?

Yes, I do believe that health care should be universal. As a person who believes firmly in the Love of Christ, I find it difficult to have any other opinion than that healthcare should be accessible to everyone. In his article, 7 Things the Bible Says About Obamacare, Director of Communications of The Family Leader, David Barnett states, “God cares for those who have fallen victim to physical or economic hard times, and commands believers in Christ to be His hands and feet to minister to them”. How do we say we care, and then act like we don’t. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Your actions speak so loudly sir, I cannot hear what you are saying”. I think we all should ponder these words a little more intently from time to time. The difficulty with achieving universal healthcare, as I see it, is that the United States is a capitalist country. Operating in a system that thrives on competition of numerous companies, it is easy to imagine how difficult taking one aspect of life, healthcare, out of a capitalist economy and nationalize it would be.

For too long politicians have managed the effort to nationalize healthcare and have failed miserably. At the same time doctors and insurance providers have offered a go at the goal and have not accomplished much either. As a veteran, I use this country’s Veteran’s Administration’s healthcare. I see it as somewhat of a nationalized healthcare. It is not independent and so not truly nationalized. If I am being treated for a service connected it is free and all other service is charged at a percentage of my previous year’s taxes, as well as what coverage my health insurance plan covers. So, there are some aspects of a nationalized healthcare system in the VA, and some aspects of subsidies.

It would be interesting to gather economists familiar with how nations using nationalized healthcare programs operate and see what they can come up with using the VA as a model. In their article, Is Obamacare Harming Quality? (Part 1), economists argue the cost ineffectiveness of just one aspect of the Affordable Care Act. I am certain that one of their hiccups is going to be the fact that insurance companies are not going to be too keen on going out of business. In addition, drug companies are not going to be okay with regulated prices and many doctor’s who enjoy the freedom of hitting it rich in America are not going to be okay with abandoning the capitalist way of life. Especially when education is not nationalized and their debt is just shy of the nation’s. That is an exaggeration, but nevertheless a fact. Then there is the multitude of ancillary services that will not be included in the healthcare nationalization, like transportation companies, unions, food service workers, maintenance workers, linen contractors, uniform makers and the like who are not going to abandon their capitalist ability to control their finances. There are independent companies, like 24×7 Doctors Answering Service who provide message services to medical professionals, hospitals and private practices.

Is the answer to leave healthcare in the free-market system and subsidize those who have no insurance? Which then leads us to the cost of health care versus the benefit. Americans pay more for their health care than most places on the planet. I think the benefit from that is that we have the best health care in the world. I live in Northeast Ohio. I am frequently providing transportation to people who are going to some of the best medical facilities in the world. As I transport people to the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospital, and Rainbow Babies and Children, they are receiving the best care in adult and pediatric specialties. These hospitals are on the cutting edge of cancer treatment, burn treatment, child diseases, and some of the best surgeons in the world are providing people who fly into Cleveland from all over the globe with world class care. James Stoller wrote in his article, The Cleveland Clinic: a distinctive model of American medicine;

Regarding its tripartite mission, the Clinic has demonstrated longstanding clinical excellence, e.g., with consistent ranking as first in cardiovascular care in U.S. News and World Report and top-10 rankings in at least 12 other specialties

Stoller J. K. (2014). The Cleveland Clinic: a distinctive model of American medicine. Annals of translational medicine, 2(4), 33. https://doi.org/10.3978/j.issn.2305-5839.2013.12.02

When I agree that healthcare should be available to everyone, I am not referring to local clinics, I am referring to the best care, care equal to that provided at the Cleveland Clinic. The affordable care act was a great start, but horribly written. It takes those who have nothing and gives them something. Right up until those who have nothing try to earn a little something, then the Affordable Care Act is not so Affordable. If those who are trying to come out of poverty chose not to pay the increasing cost, they are fined. For this reason, I see the Affordable Care Act more of a socialist program than a nationalization of healthcare for the poor. So, the questions are then thus, how does nationalizing health care change what providers are able to charge and then use in advanced research; at what point do we stop the ripple of nationalizing healthcare with respect to ancillary services; what will be the qualifications for program?