National Health Insurance: A Medical Disaster | The Freeman | Ideas On Liberty

National Health Insurance: A Medical Disaster | The Freeman | Ideas On Liberty

"Affordable health care has become one of the most important social issues of our time. Every news broadcast seems to have a special report on “America’s health care crisis” or a politician demanding “universal health insurance.” Evidence cited for the need for immediate and drastic government action includes:

High medical costs. The United States reportedly has the highest per capita medical expenditures of any country in the world. According to Insight magazine, U.S. citizens spent an average of $2,051 on health care in 1990, compared to $1,483 for Canadians and $1,093 for West Germans.

Rapid increase in medical expenditures. The average American now spends 11.1 percent of his income on medical care. If current trends continue, health care will consume over 17 percent of the Gross Domestic Product within 15 years.

High administrative costs. In the U.S., administrative costs consume nearly 12 percent of health dollars compared to one percent under Canada’s socialized system. More than 1,100 different insurance forms are now in use in the United States.

Americans without insurance coverage. At any given time, over 13 percent of Americans have incomes that are too high to qualify for Medicare or Medicaid, but are too low to pay for medical insurance themselves.[1]

The free market in health care, we are told, has failed. The solution offered by a growing chorus of commentators and candidates is universal, mandatory, national health insurance; in other words, socialized medicine. Is socialized medicine the answer, or will it only make things worse?

How Well Has Socialized Medicine Worked Elsewhere?"  
This is the $64, 000 question. The answers may surprise you.

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