General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Bernie Sanders talks universal Medicare, and 1.1 million people click to watch him [View all]Sophia4
(3,515 posts)I have no evidence because we haven't tried it. But look at our infant mortality rates, and our life expectancy -- lower than other countries that have our living standard (or lower).
Vermont couldn't make it work because single payer needs to be introduced in a large state like California, in a group of states like the West Coast states or in the nation as a whole.
Right now, our incredibly high insurance costs are low because many people are not insured at all, and our insurance does not cover a lot of things (like dental care) that are covered in the European countries in which I lived.
The insurance companies make enormous profits in the US. I think it is terrible.
Vermont, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, etc. the Northeastern states might be able to pool resources and afford single payer that would insure everyone.
My brother-in-law died recently. He was in his 60s and had not been to a doctor in 30 years because he could not afford insurance.
His experience should not be possible in a country that can afford every military gadget there is. Not possible.
Our healthcare system even with Obamacare which is better than the system we had before Obamacare is a national tragedy. What in the world are people crowd sourcing the expenses of cancer treatment for????? Cancer treatment should cost only what the government takes out of your paycheck for it as it takes money out of every paycheck, a percentage of pay, to cover healthcare costs.
We are the laughing stock of the world because of our idiocy about healthcare.
The American health insurance companies and their investors make a lot of money from the pain and suffering of ordinary Americans. It's a scandal of huge proportions in my view. And Americans have no idea. They just fall for the propaganda.
Obviously, if you have single payer, you no longer pay the insurance premiums to your private insurance company. In the end, it will be cheaper. Because you take the profit out of the cost. And if it isn't cheaper, it is because the healthcare is far better in terms of accessibility and the numbers of people who, unlike my poor brother-in-law, can obtain healthcare at almost no cost -- or at least at an affordable cost.
I feel deeply about this topic. Single-payer is the way to go.
Compare infant mortality rates, life expectancies, costs of insurance. The US does not do well in any of these areas. I just posted all kinds of references on costs and the healthcare outcomes in the US. We are way behind.