SOUTH HAVEN HIGH SCHOOL

THE PLAGUE OF HEALTH CARE: INFECTING THE NATION SINCE 1776

A RESEARCH PAPER SUBMITTED TO

MS. WILLIAMS TEACHER OF 10TH GRADE HONORS ENGLISH

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

BY: CAMERON SLEEPER

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1 Imagine you have just been in a horrific accident. All you feel is pain, there is blood

everywhere, and your sanity is hanging on by a thread. Two of your fingers have been cut off, but because you lack health care, you must choose which finger to have reattached. This has been one story of many from millions of Americans complaining about healthcare in the past decades (Sicko). The topic of health care is under heavy debate in many countries. The United States is no exception. There are many opinions as to what should be done with the United States health care situation. However, basic health care should be free to all registered U.S. citizens. It will make the United States a healthier and more economically stable country. The concept of universal health care is rather simple. A universal health care program, is where all citizens of a certain state or nation have access to basic health services (Torrey). For example, if an uninsured factory worker in America were to break a leg, he would most likely have to pay astronomical fees to pay for his cast, and possible surgery. However, if he were in a state with an instituted universal health care plan, or UHC plans as they are referred to, he would only have to pay a minor fee, also called a co-payment (Health Insurance), for his unfortunate accident. The theory is wonderful. The debate about health care comes into play when an obvious flaw in the plan is pointed out. Who will pay for it? If the government in just about any other Western country were asked, they would say taxes. The French are a prime example of this. In order to support their highly successful health system, the average tax on a workers salary is 21 percent (Shapiro). That may seem excessive, but what the 21 percent goes to must also be observed. First off, every single French citizen is guaranteed universal health care for everything. Whether it is doctors check-ups, a tooth filling, or even spinal cord surgery the government will pay for it ("French Health Care System).

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Furthermore, The French system, as with many others, lets the people choose their own doctor, hospital, and even health insurance provider. Not only that, but the government delves deeper into the health care it can provide for the people, while maintaining their liberties. The French health care system also gives them multiple choices of daycares, and temporary nanny services, free of charge, included in its Health policy (Sicko). If this were to be proposed in America, the majority of the population would be overwhelmingly opposed to the idea of letting the government handle their children. The French, however, consider this a basic necessity to what their government provides for them. In perspective, the French and American health care systems are almost complete opposites. In the French system, not only is 100% of the population covered by health insurance, it is maintained through the cooperation of both the government, and private insurance companies, a feat that would be truly remarkable in the consumer based market system in the U.S. As a result of this cooperation, the French population has much healthier citizens, with 2 more years on their life expectancy than Americans (Abraar). Clearly, their system is working, but Americans must come to terms with the flaws in the system. Not only do the French outlive the U.S., but many other western countries as well. One prime example of another country with Universal health care is Britain. There, with the life expectancy rate at around 79 years, it is said, even the poorest Brits out live many of the richest Americans, (Sicko). This is due in part through a health care system that is under more government control than even France, as it eradicates the system of cooperation between the government and insurance companies. The NHS, or National Health Service controls their healthcare. Created in the wake of World War Two, the British needed not only a healthcare system that would be able to provide care to the thousands injured in the War, but also one that

Sleeper would stimulate the economy moreover. Hence formed the NHS, and along with it the

government hired hundreds of practitioners and nurses (Harrell). The entirely tax funded NHS has flourished ever since. What does the NHS provide that the U.S. Government does not? The short answer is everything. All doctors checkups, and hospital visits are completely free of charge. The most that a patient will ever pay for medications is $15. In fact, the government even reimburses its patients for any transportation fees paid to arrive at the hospital (Sicko). Not to mention all this is provided to citizens for a slight tax increase over the U.S (Blogdet). This is made possible through the many British committees working to get their health care system to an economically efficient price; they spend nearly half the U.S. does on each of its citizens when it comes to health care (Harrell). But the number of countries with universal health care does not stop with Britain; it continues its expansion across the Atlantic, to Americas next door neighbors. Despite being ranked as number 30th out of 191 countries, Canadas health system is generally know as being one of the best. The Canadian healthcare is by no means perfect, but it could be an excellent guide for reforming the American health care system. Their system, based mostly on taxes, seems to do more for less (ONeill, ONeill). There are a few drawbacks, such as longer waiting lines, although they never deny emergency procedures. Despite its flaws however, the Canadians are still incredulously satisfied by their healthcare system, and are appalled with the Americans ideas of a health care system, a clear sign that the system is in need of reform (Sicko). On the other side of the U.S. there is yet another utopia for universal healthcare. 90 miles from the tip of Florida, in Cuba, a plethora of doctors, as well as cheap, reliable medicine will be found. Cuba and the U.S. have definitely had different opinions on ideas in the past. The debate

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over health care is no different. Cuba has made it their goal to provide health care to every one of its citizens, despite its recent economic depression. Cuba does this through a mixture of communistic strategies that would be nearly impossible for the U.S. to adopt, being a modern democracy. They use a mixture of taxes, and lowering doctors salaries. They also emphasize using preventive care, or trying to prevent cancer and diseases from occurring, before they actually form. This is to keep expensive cancer treatment at a minimum (Keim). With their health care system, they manage to maintain a life expectancy rate, nearly equal to the United States, despite Cubas impoverished state (Abraar). Clearly the U.S. is being left behind in the region of health care, but what exactly are the flaws of the system and what is preventing our reform? For the most part, health care reform in the U.S. would be done much faster if it were not for the few people that make money off of the current health care system, also called special interests. They may include high paid doctors, hospitals, and of course, the pharmaceutical and insurance companies (Starr; Klein). These influential corporations often provide incentives for politicians to go against health care reform (Sicko). This is all done to save a few extra dollars that the health insurance companies are already robbing from consumers. This deceitful health insurance process starts with a customer. There are numerous reasons that a person would want health insurance. They could be concerned with their health, and are afraid of the potential conditions that could come from their lifestyle. That way, in theory, if they were to be diagnosed with a detrimental medical condition, the health insurance company would pay for most of, or all of the costs. They could also be diagnosed with a certain medical condition, which would be too much to pay for without health insurance. In the past, the

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health care providers could deny Americans health insurance for pre-existing conditions; however, many laws have been implemented to prevent this from occurring. Then comes the day that the customer gets diagnosed with an unforeseen medical condition. Instead of trying to help out their patrons, the insurance companies go into panic mode, trying to find some preexisting medical condition that the consumer did not even know about, in order to try and get out of paying the huge medical bills. Sometimes the insurance companies win, sometimes they may even lose, but they are never ethically right in doing so, which is why many countries have been implementing universal health care plans; to increase their populations morale and life expectancy. The United States, however, is still not one of those countries. There is still hope, however. Since the Obama administration has taken office, many new measures have been taken to move the U.S. toward universal healthcare. Since taking office in 2008, President Obama has signed in the Affordable Health Care Act. Before this health care act, many customers were being denied service. Under the act, however, Americans cannot be denied coverage due to pre-existing health situations. The act also has an individual mandate for health insurance, requiring all Americans to have some form of health coverage (Kliff, Whitman). This will make the American health system nearly universal in 2014, and give health insurance to over 40 million uninsured citizens ("The Presidents Record on Health Care."). Not only that, but the act will prevent unnecessary increases in health care premiums, and ergo more money being wasted, resulting in a nearly $150 billion reduction in the deficit (Lambrew). Evidently, the Affordable Care Act more than pays for itself, but it may not for long. As many politicians are questioning the constitutionality of the act, people are fighting to bring it down. A possible outcome of this could mean that almost 40 million people continue to go

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without health insurance, and continued unnecessary federal spending ("The Presidents Record on Health Care."). However, if the law is overturned, the battle will surely continue on Capital Hill, and will not be resolved until a compromise is reached (Now What?). This debate affects many people in the world of business and in citizens lives additionally. Mike Sklar has been a certified physician for 19 years, and currently practices in Washington D.C. His opinion on health care is that as more people drop their health care providers due to inflating costs, the less people come to the doctor. As a result disorders will continue to rise in the public, and the health of the U.S. will see a gradual decline. He finds that the simplest way to combat this would be to implement a Universal Health care system, for the benefit of the public, no matter what costs would come to him (Sklar). However, other doctors are worried about the affects a Universal health care system would have on their salary. John Mackey is one of those doctors. Although still believing in a benefitial health care system, Mackey does not believe a universal plan is a feasible option. He feels as though it will cause an increase in the deficit, which is not something that the U.S. could handle right now (Mackey). Many other doctors also feel that if the government controlled their salaries, they would have barely enough to survive. As seen in other countries, this is not true in the slightest. Many doctors in Europe, especially Britain, have an income of up to $1,000,000 dollars a year. This is unmistakably enough to survive, and doctors would continue to live rather well off lives (Sicko). Along with the lack of sufficient health care reform impacting the professional world, it also affects many lives personally. Across the nation there are thousands of examples in which the health care system has wronged its citizens. One such example occurred in Huntington Beach, California. Linus Raslavicus was denied health care after leaving his 16-year

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employment to become a software consultant due to high blood pressure. In Chicago, Erin Walker was denied an operation to save her from an extremely painful syndrome because of the astronomical fees that the operation would cost (Saib). But not everyone is open to such dramatic change. Many vehemently oppose the reform of health care in every way. Mike Hahn is one such person. He claims that any tax increases and higher deficits would ruin the economy (Hahn). However a new national health care bill would only increase taxes on the middle class 1.45%, a minor increase considering the benefits ("Healthy Tax Increases, Not Only on Wealthy."). A health reform bill would also pump over a billion dollars into the population from refunds the health insurance companies will provide ("A Billion Dollars Saved by Health Care Reforms."). Through this evidence, the claims that any health care bill will weaken the economy are incontrovertibly disproven. But how can this dilemma be solved? What can the government do to fix the obvious problem seen in the health care system? The best option would be to adopt a system exceptionally similar to the French or British. Therefore, everyone will be content. This will be to only a minor tax increase to Americans, and will not affect their way of living in the slightest, despite the added benefits of the new health care system. If America was to adopt a plan similar to France, the health insurance corporations would be able to stay in business, and the unemployment rate would not grow. Furthermore, the government would be able to hire more staff in order to improve the quality of health care. This would increase the amount of jobs in the U.S. and benefit the economy. The extensive positive impact a Universal health care system would have on the U.S. would be shown throughout every aspect of the society. People would be healthier, and more informed about what their body needs, and as a result, the life expectancy would increase.

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Additionally, creating a Universal healthcare act would unify the health databases across the country, therefore making operating on patients easier, and decreasing the amount of errors during operations ("Evidence-Based Medicine at UnitedHealthcare.com."). The list of benefits goes on forever. The need for a Universal health care system in America is clearly shown, and may never become reality if the politicians do not come to an agreement. So what can the citizens do to help expedite the process? The answer would be to do what Americans have always done when they want change. Whether it be protesting in Washington D.C. with signs, or simply talking to national senators. Anything done to help this dire change come about is helpful. As the United States politicians bicker, and health insurance companies continue to rob their customers, only to let them die when the corporations are needed the most, the need for healthcare reform is becoming increasingly evident. However it is up to the American citizens to let the government know that we indeed desire change, that we necessitate change, and that the American people have had enough of Congress power struggle. The only way to initiate change within the healthcare system is to take action, and that is what will be done in order to eradicate the revolting, capitalistic, health care structure we have in place presently, and bring about positive change in society.

Sleeper Works Cited

Abraar, Karan. "Ranking the Worlds Healthcare Systems. Ranking the Worlds Healthcare Systems. Yale Journal of Medicine and Law, 6 Nov. 2008. Web. 13 May 2012. "A Billion Dollars Saved by Health Care Reforms." HealthCare.org. 1 May 2012. Web. 3 May 2012. Blodget, Henry. "Hey, People Who Think Taxes Are Too High, Check Out This Chart..." Business Insider. 22 Nov. 2011. Web. 12 May 2012. "Evidence-Based Medicine at UnitedHealthcare.com." Evidence-Based Medicine at UnitedHealthcare.com. UnitedHealthcare, 2012. Web. 23 May 2012. "French Health Care System." - France in the United States/ Embassy of France in Washington. 29 Feb. 2008. Web. 15 May 2012. Hahn, Mike. "COLUMN: Canadian-style Health Care Wrong for Wisconsin." University Wire 8 July 2007. eLibrary. Web. 25 Apr. 2012. Harrell, Eben. "Is Britain's Health-Care System Really That Bad?" Time. Time, 18 Aug. 2009. Web. 18 May 2012. "Health Insurance." Health-Insurance.org. Health-Insurance.org, 15 July 2011. Web. 11 May 2012. "Healthy Tax Increases, Not Only on Wealthy." The Washingtion Times. The Washingtion Times, 4 Mar. 2010. Web. 23 May 2012. Keim, Brandon. "What Cuba Can Teach Us About Health Care." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 29 Apr. 2010. Web. 20 May 2012. Klein, Joe. "Will Special Interests Stymie Health-Care Reform?" Time. Time, 30 July 2009. Web. 20 May 2012.

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Kliff, Sarah, and Ezra Klein. "Individual Mandate 101: What It Is, Why It Matters." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 27 Mar. 2012. Web. 13 May 2012. Lambrew, Jeanne. "The White House Blog." Official Sources Agree: The Affordable Care Act Reduces the Deficit. The White House. Web. 20 May 2012. Mackey, John. "The Whole Foods Alternative to ObamaCare." The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal, 11 Aug. 2009. Web. 3 May 2012. "Now What?" Now with Alex Wagner. MSNBC. 23 Mar. 2012. NBC Nightly News. NBC.com, 23 Mar. 2012. Web. 1 May 2012. O'Neill, June, and Dave M. O'Neill. "Comparing the U.S. and Canadian Health Care Systems." Comparing the U.S. and Canadian Health Care Systems. Web. 20 May 2012. Saib, Daina. "Speaking of Health Care." YES! Magazine. YES! Magazine, 9 Aug. 2006. Web. 22 May 2012. Sicko. Dir. Michael Moore. Prod. Michael Moore and Meghan O'Hara. By Michael Moore. Perf. Michael Moore. The Weinstein Company, 2007. DVD. ! Shapiro, Joseph. "Health Care Lessons From France." NPR. NPR, 11 July 2008. Web. 15 May 2012. Sklar, Mark. "A Doctor's Reflections on Health-Care Reform." The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Juornal, 23 June 2009. Web. 1 May 2012. Starr, Paul. Remedy and Reaction: The Peculiar American Struggle over Health Care Reform. New Haven: Yale UP, 2011. Print. "The Presidents Record on Health Care." Obama for America. Obama for America, 1 Jan. 2011. Web. 20 May 2012. Torrey, Trisha. "What Is Universal Healthcare Coverage?" About.com Patient Empowerment.

Sleeper About.com, 16 Oct. 2008. Web. 1 May 2012.

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Trumbull, Mark. "US Tax Bite Smaller than Other Nations'" The Christian Science Monitor. The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Apr. 2010. Web. 11 May 2012. Whitman, Glen. "Hazards of the Individual Health Care Mandate." Hazards of the Individual Health Care Mandate. Cato Institute, Oct. 2007. Web. 13 May 2012.

Sleeper Bibliography

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Abraar, Karan. "Ranking the Worlds Healthcare Systems. Ranking the Worlds Healthcare Systems. Yale Journal of Medicine and Law, 6 Nov. 2008. Web. 13 May 2012. Angell, Marcia. "Health Reform You Shouldn't Believe In." American Prospect (2008). eLibrary. Web. 1 May 2012. "A Billion Dollars Saved by Health Care Reforms." HealthCare.org. 1 May 2012. Web. 3 May 2012. Blodget, Henry. "Hey, People Who Think Taxes Are Too High, Check Out This Chart..." Business Insider. 22 Nov. 2011. Web. 12 May 2012. "Consumer Assistance Program." Home. United States Government, 12 July 2010. Web. 12 May 2012. "Countries with Universal Healthcare: Will America Get SCOTUSd." Countries with Universal Healthcare Will America Get SCOTUSd. 31 Mar. 2012. Web. 12 May 2012. "Evidence-Based Medicine at UnitedHealthcare.com." Evidence-Based Medicine at UnitedHealthcare.com. UnitedHealthcare, 2012. Web. 23 May 2012. "French Health Care System." - France in the United States/ Embassy of France in Washington. 29 Feb. 2008. Web. 15 May 2012. Hahn, Mike. "COLUMN: Canadian-style Health Care Wrong for Wisconsin." University Wire 8 July 2007. eLibrary. Web. 25 Apr. 2012. Harrell, Eben. "Is Britain's Health-Care System Really That Bad?" Time. Time, 18 Aug. 2009. Web. 18 May 2012. "Health Insurance." Health-Insurance.org. Health-Insurance.org, 15 July 2011. Web. 11 May 2012.

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"Healthy Tax Increases, Not Only on Wealthy." The Washingtion Times. The Washingtion Times, 4 Mar. 2010. Web. 23 May 2012. Keim, Brandon. "What Cuba Can Teach Us About Health Care." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 29 Apr. 2010. Web. 20 May 2012. Klein, Joe. "Will Special Interests Stymie Health-Care Reform?" Time. Time, 30 July 2009. Web. 20 May 2012. Klienpeter, Myra A. "The Massachusetts Health Insurance Law: Providing Health Insurance to All." Journal of the National Medical Association (2006). eLibrary. Web. 25 Apr. 2012. Kliff, Sarah, and Ezra Klein. "Individual Mandate 101: What It Is, Why It Matters." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 27 Mar. 2012. Web. 13 May 2012. Levey, Noam N. "Global Push to Guarantee Health Coverage Leaves U.S. behind." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2012. Web. 12 May 2012. Lambrew, Jeanne. "The White House Blog." Official Sources Agree: The Affordable Care Act Reduces the Deficit. The White House. Web. 20 May 2012. Mackey, John. "The Whole Foods Alternative to ObamaCare." The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal, 11 Aug. 2009. Web. 3 May 2012. Meinhold, Lorez. "Implementing Health Care Reform." Colorado.gov. Dec. 2010. Web. 27 Apr. 2012. Newhouse, J. P. "Consumer-Directed Health Plans And The RAND Health Insurance Experiment." Health Affairs 23.6 (2004). eLibrary. Web. 25 Apr. 2012. "Now What?" Now with Alex Wagner. MSNBC. 23 Mar. 2012. NBC Nightly News. NBC.com, 23 Mar. 2012. Web. 1 May 2012. O'Neill, June, and Dave M. O'Neill. "Comparing the U.S. and Canadian Health Care Systems."

Sleeper Comparing the U.S. and Canadian Health Care Systems. Web. 20 May 2012.

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Saib, Daina. "Speaking of Health Care." YES! Magazine. YES! Magazine, 9 Aug. 2006. Web. 22 May 2012. Sicko. Dir. Michael Moore. Prod. Michael Moore and Meghan O'Hara. By Michael Moore. Perf. Michael Moore. The Weinstein Company, 2007. DVD. Shapiro, Joseph. "Health Care Lessons From France." NPR. NPR, 11 July 2008. Web. 15 May 2012. Sklar, Mark. "A Doctor's Reflections on Health-Care Reform." The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Juornal, 23 June 2009. Web. 1 May 2012. Starr, Paul. Remedy and Reaction: The Peculiar American Struggle over Health Care Reform. New Haven: Yale UP, 2011. Print. "The Presidents Record on Health Care." Obama for America. Obama for America, 1 Jan. 2011. Web. 20 May 2012. Tobler, Laura, Christie L. Hager, and Hansen Melissa. "Can It Work?" State Legislatures 12 Jan. 2007. eLibrary. Web. 25 Apr. 2012. Torrey, Trisha. "What Is Universal Healthcare Coverage?" About.com Patient Empowerment. About.com, 16 Oct. 2008. Web. 1 May 2012. Trumbull, Mark. "US Tax Bite Smaller than Other Nations'" The Christian Science Monitor. The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Apr. 2010. Web. 11 May 2012. Whitman, Glen. "Hazards of the Individual Health Care Mandate." Hazards of the Individual Health Care Mandate. Cato Institute, Oct. 2007. Web. 13 May 2012. Whitney, Eric. "Colorado Extends Medicaid To Some Adults Without Kids." Weblog post. National Public Radio. PBS, 26 Apr. 2012. Web. 26 Apr. 2012.