2008 Woodie Awards
One Way or Another: Universal Health Care (Pro)
"Administrative Waste" Not, Want Not
Tiffany Farmakis
Issue date: 4/14/04 Section: Opinion
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Health care is a human right - unless you live in the United States.
Over the last few decades, there has been a steep rise in the number of uninsured citizens in the United States. According to a report from the U.S. Census Bureau, 43.6 million Americans, or more than 15 percent of our population, were without health insurance last year.
Millions of self-employed entrepreneurs, retirees, small business owners and consumers struggle to pay for the excessive increases in health care costs. Many have had to cut back on coverage, and some can no longer afford coverage of any kind.
Health insurance isn't a privilege but a right that must be granted to all Americans regardless of their employment status or financial situation.
Some wonder, if Congress institutes universal health care, will the government-run system be counterproductive to the quality of care?
Let's look to our neighbors, shall we?
Virtually every industrialized nation recognizes health care as a basic entitlement. Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom all provide universal health coverage to their citizens and receive better patient satisfaction ratings than American health care providers at a fraction of the United States' per capita spending on health care. More than $1.6 trillion is spent on health care annually in the United States, equaling more than 13 percent of our Gross Domestic Product; yet other nations provide more complete health coverage at much lower costs.
Critics argue there is no money to cover all the uninsured Americans, especially at a time when the country is running up huge deficits and many aren't willing to pay higher taxes to ensure universal coverage.
According to a study by Harvard University and the Canadian Institute for Health Information, the "administrative waste" in our current system provides more than enough capital to give care for millions of uninsured Americans. The study found that the overhead costs of private insurance companies equal 11.7 cents of every health care dollar, compared with 3.6 cents for Medicare.
Over the last few decades, there has been a steep rise in the number of uninsured citizens in the United States. According to a report from the U.S. Census Bureau, 43.6 million Americans, or more than 15 percent of our population, were without health insurance last year.
Millions of self-employed entrepreneurs, retirees, small business owners and consumers struggle to pay for the excessive increases in health care costs. Many have had to cut back on coverage, and some can no longer afford coverage of any kind.
Health insurance isn't a privilege but a right that must be granted to all Americans regardless of their employment status or financial situation.
Some wonder, if Congress institutes universal health care, will the government-run system be counterproductive to the quality of care?
Let's look to our neighbors, shall we?
Virtually every industrialized nation recognizes health care as a basic entitlement. Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom all provide universal health coverage to their citizens and receive better patient satisfaction ratings than American health care providers at a fraction of the United States' per capita spending on health care. More than $1.6 trillion is spent on health care annually in the United States, equaling more than 13 percent of our Gross Domestic Product; yet other nations provide more complete health coverage at much lower costs.
Critics argue there is no money to cover all the uninsured Americans, especially at a time when the country is running up huge deficits and many aren't willing to pay higher taxes to ensure universal coverage.
According to a study by Harvard University and the Canadian Institute for Health Information, the "administrative waste" in our current system provides more than enough capital to give care for millions of uninsured Americans. The study found that the overhead costs of private insurance companies equal 11.7 cents of every health care dollar, compared with 3.6 cents for Medicare.
