Krugman on Health Care: Pay Up, America
November 30th, 2007 by Peter SudermanIn his New York Times column today, Paul Krugman provides a frightenly blunt explanation of the liberal rationale for health-care mandates:
The central question is whether there should be a health insurance “mandate”– a requirement that everyone sign up for health insurance, even if they don’t think they need it. The Edwards and Clinton plans have mandates; the Obama plan has one for children, but not for adults.
Why have a mandate? The whole point of a universal health insurance system is that everyone pays in, even if they’re currently healthy, and in return everyone has insurance coverage if and when they need it.
And it’s not just a matter of principle. As a practical matter, letting people opt out if they don’t feel like buying insurance would make insurance substantially more expensive for everyone else.
So let’s be completely clear: Even if you’re healthy, even if you don’t want or need health insurance — or only want to purchase inexpensive coverage against major financial catastrophes — Krugman and the rest of the liberal health care crowd don’t want to let you. They want to force you to pay for the health insurance of everyone else. This isn’t about charity or compassion or any of those liberal warm-n-fuzzies, it’s about taking your money and giving it away.
It doesn’t matter how much it costs you, or that you earned the money in the first place, or whether you’ll get health care benefits from it yourself. It’s about requiring you cough up, like it or not.
What a mindset: You earn, we spend.
And these are the same people trying to sell their programs based on freedom?
November 30th, 2007 at 9:43 pm
Exactly! I couldnt have put it better myself. These guys have a lot of ideas of what to do with our money as far as health care goes. It’s not bad enough that the entire health care industry is a complete mess. We are looking at pay cuts for Dr’s which means were looking at having LESS Dr’s and then of course there are many elderly people paying increasing premiums on their medicare that they cant even afford. This is why AARP has set up http://www.thisissoridiculous.com so that we can all sign a petition to make our voice heard. While your there you can also read updated news, watch videos, and even e-mail your congressman to let him know how you feel. I’m working to help AARP promote better Medicare because this is an important issue that isn’t getting enough attention.
December 1st, 2007 at 9:27 pm
Dear Taxpayer,
You have been providing for my health care for several years now, and for this I am most appreciative. Tax supported programs provide my expensive, monthly medication at no cost to me. Doctor visits and my quarterly blood tests are also covered through another taxpayer funded program.
I am writing to you via my brand new HP personal computer. I’ll need to run out to get dinner now at a local restaurant, followed by an evening of hi-def movie watching on my brand new 57″ HDTV.
Health care is a right, not a privilege. Making a profit on the delivery of health services is both immoral, and anti-Christian. What would Jesus do?
I will continue to fight for what some call “socialized” medicine.
Until the day I am victorious, I appreciate the fact that your tax dollars are already affording me the health care I deserve as an American.
Thank You.
December 3rd, 2007 at 5:54 pm
Very well said and i agree wholeheartedly, i am also fighting for socialized medicine
December 4th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
If what you say is true, why do I have to pay for schools. Everyone without kids shouldn’t have to pay for your kids schooling. But we do. Our thinking is that schooling is essential to a healthy nation and so is our health!