Toon & text by John Auchter
If you need some perspective for this health care madness, reporter and author T.R. Reid is a pretty good place to start. Reid is an American but has lived overseas (Japan and the UK) and also has firsthand experience with seeking medical services in multiple countries as part of his work. Research for his 2009 book, The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper and Fairer Health Care, predates the ACA, so it is an excellent resource if you have trouble remembering why Obamacare came to be.
One of Reid’s main observations is that a country’s health care system is reflective of its nature and values. So for example Germany has an extremely complicated public/private (yet strictly non-profit) system, but Germans are rule-followers, so it works. Canada has a single-payer system that sometimes causes ridiculously long waits for certain procedures, but Canadians are all about fairness and the system treats everybody (rich and poor) the same, so it works.
The United States, well, we all want to be winners. We want the best health care, but don’t want to pay for it. This has resulted in a convoluted mix of systems — your particular flavor depends on your age, employment status, geographic location, and so on.
But beyond its burdensome expense and gross inefficiency, it’s primary flaws are these:
- The United States does not provide guaranteed health services to all its citizens (which is a problem for the poor and middle class).
- The United States is the only major developed country where its citizens can be bankrupted by medical expenses (which is a problem for everybody except the hyper-rich).
The ACA was an attempt to solve these flaws. Repeal and (maybe) Replace is an attempt to double-down on them.
To be clear, I don’t believe a Medicare-for-all type system is without its own flaws. It would serve us well to acknowledge and plan for the challenges.
But can you imagine a health care system where all individuals would be free to move jobs and start businesses without fear of medical consequences? Where small and large businesses would be unburdened from the expensive diversion of administrating insurance plans? Where the State of Michigan could free its budget from the medical world and concentrate on education and infrastructure?
It’s really a matter of deciding whether we want to reflect the best or worst part of our nature.
John Auchter draws cartoons. Lots and lots of them. You can find them at his incredibly popular website auchtoon.com. You can also find his stuff on Michigan Public Radio’s website under Opinion.
No! Let them all die! My family and I certainly never will have serious medical problems, because we all are patriotic Americans and decent people. Those others – if they get hurt or sick – they must deserve it!
This is very simple: If you can afford medical treatment, get it. Otherwise, suffer or die. That is the American way. Land of Opportunity. Liberty and Justice for all. Period.
A right winger will say; If you want health care, don’t be poor…get a job!
I wanted to keep my doctor – Obama and the Democrats lied to me.
I wanted to keep my plan – Obama and the Democrats lied to me.
My annual costs went WAY UP rather than down by $2500 as Obama and the Democrats promised.
Repeal Obamacare…. Don’t replace it.
Get a better job and buy your own healthcare like Fred said. Why do I have to subsidize you. That’s the Rebublican way isn’t it??
If the ACA or obammascam as some refer to it is so great, why did democrats in congress exempt themselves and other federal government workers from being covered by it? There were a number of unions that were also granted exemptions from obammascam. It is a matter of record that a were exempt from having to join the ACA. Of course these exemptees were donors to the democrats.
To Jims says: It is not the republican way to subsidize.
It is the demorats that do most of the subsidizing.