Obamacare – An Addendum
For those of you who read my previous article about Obamacare, here is a brief follow-up with some points I’d also like to touch on. For those of you who didn’t read it, read it now.
The idea being spoken to here is the concept of decreasing the costs of healthcare for people who are sick and who have pre-existing conditions by mandating everyone sign up for coverage. Payments on new policies from those who were previously uninsured (and those who now have to pay more than before who are perfectly healthy) and fines that are assessed against those who opt out will pay to balance out the costs that those in need of frequent medical attention previously had to endure. It also gives everyone undeniable access to coverage regardless of their medical history. Sounds like a good idea, but young people without health problems will end up getting hosed financially.
Being someone who is waiting for their government hosing, one must ask oneself; does everyone who would benefit from my contributions really deserve it? I’m not talking about people with hereditary or otherwise unexpected and unpreventable illnesses, of course. I’m talking about people like Irina Pavlova, were she an American citizen, who abused the drug “krokodil” (a Russian, homemade heroin substitute that just made its first appearance in the US) for years and ended up with brain damage because of it. There are plenty of harmful substances out there that people chose to indulge in that can, and often will, end them up in the hospital. Should healthy young people be paying for drug addicts who overdose or end up with serious health issues that require treatment?
Now obviously that type of system raises questions over things like cancer and diabetes, both of which can be caused by lifestyle choices such as smoking and one’s diet. But I think the answer is obvious; smoking and eating tons of sugar aren’t illegal and heroin and cocaine are. People who break the law and in doing so risk their health shouldn’t be taking money out of the pocket, even if it is indirectly, of someone who obeys the law and lives a healthy lifestyle.
It might sound irresponsible or shortsighted to not want health insurance, but there are young people out there who can barely afford the bills they’re faced with now. Outrageous student load debts, car payments, utility bills. What if an extra $100 a month is the breaking point for someone who really only has their health? Is that fair? And what if someone just plain doesn’t want to pay for it? Don’t we get forced to pay for enough things we don’t want or need?
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