Reply #24: Yes there is...

[ljm2002]

...such as:

1 -- forcing people to buy insurance means we still have to navigate the complexities of what plan to choose, and we still have to deal with private insurers who are motivated not to pay for our care when we need it

2 -- forcing people to buy insurance means there must be some means of ENforcing it -- and what does that mean? Will people be fined (putting them farther away from being able to afford it)? Will they be denied necessary care? How exactly will that part work?

3 -- forcing people to buy means the profit motive is still an essential part of the health care system, therefore the motivation is still to deny care. Single payer removes that motivation.

4 -- single payer health care is cheaper overall than any other health care arrangement. Look up the statistics on how much different countries pay for their health care.

5 -- single payer health care takes the burden off businesses completely, allowing them to recoup at least some of their competitiveness in the international arena.

6 -- single payer health care means everyone who needs health care will be able to get it, whenever they need it. This is a huge advantage from the point of view of public health.

Finally: if we can afford hundreds of billions of dollars for our various imperialist wars, then we can damned well afford to pay for health care. In fact we could shave billions off the so-called "Defense" budget (much of which could more accurately be labeled the "Offense" budget) (and not to mention the extra appropriations that don't even get counted as part of the budget, money that seems to appear out of thin air), and get universal health care without raising taxes at all. But I for one am willing to bear the burden of extra taxes -- I'll bet it would not be as much as what I'm paying right now for health insurance (I'm one of the lucky ones who has health insurance).