What do I think?

*Ok, I wrote this over a week ago, and sat on it all week cause I didn’t think it was very well written…now I’m too lazy to edit/revise it so I’m just going to puke it up here and you can take it for what it’s worth: what I think about health care…

I’m Sick today, so I thought it would be a good day to answer Kyle’s challenge and tell you what I think.

What do I think about health care?

I think (this one won’t ruffle any feathers) the current health care system sucks. It’s great for the rich, and it’s oppressive for the poor, or the middle-class who may not have great coverage, and don’t have lot’s of extra cash laying around.

Free market capitalism says that keeping healthcare in the private sector will keep costs down, because in encourages competition among providers, pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies etc. However, this school of thought is inherently based off of making money. In this case, lot’s of money. Money that is generated by people getting sick (they’ll make money off of me today), or injured. The company with the “best services” at the “best prices” should, in theory make the most money.

I’m a business man–in fact a salesman. My job is to encourage others to spend money with our company. I understand capitalism, and in most respects I am grateful for it. I was also raised as a very conservative Christian family, and I still believe that whenever possible, keeping the government small is the best-case scenario.

{begin tangent}
Today we have loads of programs that are designed to help the poor, the sick, the elderdly, and others who are in need. From welfare to Medicaid, social security to subsidized school lunches…our local, state and federal governents have many branches which attempt to give aid to those in need.

I am theoretically opposed to most of these programs, however I support them in practicality. Let me explain:

During the great depression (for example), FDR put into place lot’s of federal work programs, welfare, and social security. His thinking was influenced largely by Keynesian theory which basically says that in economic hardships, the government should go into debt to keep money in people pockets and give the economy a “shot in the arm” so that it can bounce back. Since then, welfare programs and social security have become a staple of our society.

IN THEORY, I would rather not have this type of system, but as I mentioned earlier, given today’s US social/economic status–I think it is necessary for all practical purposes.

IN THEORY, I would rather have history reflecting the body of Christ stepping in during the 1930s and sharing it’s resources, taking care of the poor, sick, and elderly, and establishing its self as the “staple” of help in our society when it is in need. I was not there, and I don’t know exactly what it was like, but I think the “Church” (meaning organized religion) and the “body” (meaning Christian people–whether organized or not) blew it by not helping their friends and neighbors in need. If the resources of the Red Cross, Salvation Army, All of the Church denominations,and so on were pooled together and used wisely, how much could have been accomplished during the Great Depression without federal government intervention?

That seems to be the pattern of most religious organizations in the US…take care of our own first–and if we have time and resources we might think about helping out the neighborhood. I wish that all believers would recognize the importance of community to our faith (and how much Christ stressed to take care of those in need).

IN PRACTICALITY this doesn’t work. People are greedy, myself included. I earn a decent income, and have no time spending it on my house, my two cars, my dog, and lot’s of entertainment. My wife and I DO make it a priority to give a percentage of our income to charities, but I think that this is not the case. We feel “poor” because often times at the end of the month we realize that we spent more than we made, and we are digging ourselves into debt–like most Americans.

So I must give up on my ideal communal society because I am a greedy person, and I think that most in this country are at least as greedy as me. Which is why I will support government programs that are aimed at helping those in need, because it takes the option out of it. In reality, when we have the option to help the poor, or buy a new car, too many of us choose the car. A government run solution will force us to give a percentage towards “the common good” and while our government has plenty of corruption and bullshit bureaucracy, I still believe in it, and will do my part to vote and voice my opinion, and be involved in politics on a local, state, and federal level.
{end tangent}

While I would love to keep the government out of our health-care system, the current “establishment” who control the health care providers, insurance, and pharmaceutical companies, have proven that this is indeed a profitable industry–the industry of people’s misfortunes. And since health care is something that we all need, they have banded together and decided that they can charge whatever they want to charge for their products and services.

I am in favor of a Universal health care system, if it can effectively take profit margins off the “most important” list, and put people’s needs (all people–no matter what their race, religion, or economic status) back at the top of that list. It will also need to reform the FDA in a major way. To quote Kevin Trudeau (who is questionably credible), “The FDA does not exist to protect the people, rather it exists to protect the Pharmaceutical companies.”

With our present system, the major drug companies have nothing to gain from cures. They have found that prolonging the life of cancer patients is quite profitable. Perhaps a better solution than the proposed “Universal Healthcare System” is at very least a “Not-For profit” system. But I’m not sure how that would work either.

There you go…my disorganized thoughts on health care. Sorry for the randomness.