That is not a question that is black and white. There are many shades of gray.
Children definitely have a right to health care. You can't help who you are born to. If a baby is born to a drug addict mother, why should s/he not even get a chance at being healthy?
Illegal immigrants do not have a right to health care. They are in this country illegally. Why should Americans have to pay for their health care? And make no mistake, someone has to pay for the supposed "free" health care that is being proposed. Nothing is free. If you think it is, you need a serious reality check.
My family is a family of four. My two kids have been insured without a break in coverage since the day of their birth. Is it private insurance? Yes. Did it have to be? No. When I had my kids, my husband and I were making a paltry $20/hr (combined) salary. We could have chosen to have more money in our pocket, put our kids on Healthy Families and gone without insurance ourselves. Or we could suck it up and pay the cost of insurance for the kids we chose to have. We went with the latter.
I am all for health insurance reform. I don't think the insurance companies should have as much power as they do. I don't believe the government should have that power either. The federal government was not created to be the ruling power of the people.
A smart person I know says this:
The Constitution was created to limit the powers of the federal government. The Founding Fathers knew that the country needed some form of federal government to take care of some basic needs, i.e. defense of the country, infrastructure, etc. The Constitution is very specific about what powers the federal government has. It says in essence that anything that is not listed in the Constitution is reserved to the States or the people.
So we're going to change the Constitution at will to state what the federal government needs it to state? That completely goes against what the Constitution is there to do and specifically goes against the saying "All men are created equal...". Every one American has the same opportunity as the next. Sure, it's harder for some than others, but your life is what you make of it.
So why should I be forced to pay for your health care?
5 comments:
Fair enough...but, you made the point above - there already IS "free" healthcare, and we're all already paying for it.
With regard to your later points (constitution and government interference, etc), I think of public option healthcare like public option schooling - I can choose the sometimes-crappy, government-run school system for my (someday) kids, or I can choose to pay out the arse to a private school system where I get to choose just what I want them to learn/hear/know/see, etc...And actually, if I never even have kids of my own, or if I choose to have them in private school, I still have to contribute my tax money to education so that someone elses' child gets an education.
And schools aren't the only government-run place we throw our tax dollars either...think police officers, fire fighters, postal workers (and Oh Boi does that place ever need some reform?!).
Further example - fire fighting is a so-called "socialist" organization where we pour tax dollars, and if you're house is burning down, the fire department isn't going to check to make sure you have home owners insurance before putting out the flames. Nor are they going to send you a bill when they're finished! But, if you sprain your ankle running out of your house during the fire, or your child gets ill from smoke inhalation, you better pray your health insurance covers that or you'll pay more for medical bills than rebuilding your home.
Not that I think the current plan has ALL the answers. But I definitely do believe in a public option plan and I don't believe it changes anything about what the Constitution intended.
Stefanie, I understand the correlation between education and health care, but don't necessarily agree.
Another thing I wonder is why is the government trying to start a new plan rather than overhauling the one that is already in place? I don't get that.
I also don't like that I might have to pay more in taxes. Of course no one wants to pay more, but we're strictly middle class. The exact people this health care plan is supposed to help.
I tend to agree with Stephanie (as you well know). I think she makes an ecellent point about public safety workers and public schools. Also? Public libraries. I've never heard you complain about using those (heh).
I think having a free basic service available to all citizens of the US can only do good. But I also think the current health care policy needs major reform.
Oh, and I do agree w/ you that we should be looking to fix our current policy, not start a new one.
Oh, and I do agree w/ you
Rinse, lather, repeat.
I think she makes an excellent point about public schools and public safety workers, too.
Sorry, I meant Sefanie. :)
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