Universal healthcare for all

Course Objectives: 1,5,8,9,10,11

Assignment Objectives: In this assignment I hope to explore Bernie Sanders universal healthcare proposal and talk about whether or not this is possible.

Have you ever struggled to go to the doctors because your insurance didn’t cover your appointment? Are you sick of paying copays every time you go to the doctors? Do you even have health insurance and the ability to get care when needed? If any of these apply to you, then you’d probably agree that something needs to be done about our health care system. Wouldn’t it be great if we had more choices over what doctors we could see, no more copays, and  better patient care? Wouldn’t it be even better if this applied to everyone and everyone was able to get medical attention regardless of their income? Right now, 33 million people in America still don’t have health insurance (FiveThirtyEight). You would think a first world country such as ours would have a much better health care system than we do now.  When compared to other countries throughout the world, America was scored lowest almost every time;  I think we can all agree something needs to be done.

With the political elections coming up within the next year; this is the time for a change.   One political candidate that really stuck out to me was Bernie Sanders and his Universal Health Care proposal. Sanders states that he has a solution to make healthcare available to all. His new health care proposal says that he will be getting rid of copays. I am all for making our health care system better, but can Bernie Sanders really achieve this?  How is it possible to have a universal health care system that makes health care affordable and accessible for all without paying unreal amounts in taxes.

Bernie Sanders health care plan consists of a single payer health system.  In this plan health care will be available to every single person, not just people over the age of 65.   Copayments and insurance premiums will disappear with a single payer system.  You will no longer have to worry about finding a doctor your insurance covers in your network.  I think moving to a single payer health care system is a good idea, however, not everyone agrees. Some argue that single payer health systems wouldn’t work in America.  According to various online articles, many other countries have been using the single payer system and it has been successful. Such countries include Italy, Sweden, Canada, and the United Kingdom; four countries with the best health care status.

So if the single payer system isn’t the issue, what is? Many people fear that taxes will go up an astronomical high amount if we have a universal health care system.  America currently outspends every country in health care. Bernie Sander’s new proposal health care costs will save Americans in health costs. However, people who argue taxes will go up with this new health care aren’t completely wrong. According to Bernie’s plan, there will be an increase in payroll tax on employers of 6.7% and a progressive income tax. Although this seems like a lot in the long run, it will actually benefit more people overall.

I strongly believe that Bernie Sander’s universal health care proposal will be beneficial to almost every citizen.  With the single payer system, every American will have health care regardless of  their income.  It will also make the health care system much less complicated, no more copayments, or having to check if a doctor is in your network; the whole process would be much easier.  Even though taxes will rise, the pros outweigh the cons.

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