Why is Health Care an Issue At All?
1. The Uninsured
To begin, there are simply many people who are not presently covered. There is dispute over the exact number, but somewhere between 30 million and 47 million people are without health insurance in the United States. The former number does not include illegal immigrants or young Americans who choose not to purchase health care. Any way you look at it, 30 million or roughly 10% of the population is a significant number.
If they require medical care, they will get it, as it is illegal for care to be refused to someone simply because they have no insurance and can't afford to pay. However, in these cases the standard of care declines and often people choose to avoid visiting a doctor until they require emergency care. In other words, they do not generally participate in the routine checkups recommended for detecting life threatening illness early and other preventative care practices.
2. The Rising Cost of Insurance Premiums
Medical care is expensive and as such the United States has seen the cost of medical insurance climb at an alarming rate. The average cost of an employer supported health plan for a family of four is just over $12000 a year.
There are projections that health care costs will rise faster than economic growth over the next number of years.
3. Loss of Insurance for Pre-Existing Conditions
An insurance company can refuse to renew your insurance once you have been diagnosed with a life threatening illness. This, of course is problematic when people are looking for additional treatment.
4. Medical Malpractice Insurance On the Rise
Due to the fact that there is no cap on court awards for medical malpractice insurance, people have received seemingly disproportionate cash awards for "pain and suffering". Everyone pays when insurance companies have to shell out millions for court settlements. Premiums can rise quickly and some doctors either stop practicing, stop performing certain procedures or risk it all and go without insurance.
Between 2000 and 2002, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that premiums for doctors went up 15%. In one Florida county for general practitioners, malpractice insurance went up to $175000 for the year. Rising malpractice premiums may also encourage physicians to practice "defensive medicine," performing more tests and procedures than necessary in order to reduce exposure to lawsuits. Both rising malpractice premiums and defensive medicine practices may contribute to the increase in health insurance premiums.
See the link below, read the arguments posed there and do some of your own research on the topic of health care. Over the next two classes in the lab, learn as much as you can about the topic. Put together a set of notes on what you have learned. These notes should include the following headings:
http://www.balancedpolitics.org/universal_health_care.htm
1. Where is the health care debate going?
Track the bills that are in the House of Representatives and the Senate. What do they offer? Who supports them?
2. What does public opinion say about health care?
Find public opinion polling results on questions concerning health care and how that opinion is changing over time. For example, to what extent to Americans support a government operated health option? How has that support changed over the last six months?
3. What are the three strongest arguments on both sides?
In your research, decide on the three best arguments on each side and justify why you think they are the most important.
4. How are people debating this issue in the media?
Check out the ads being run across America right now both in support and in opposition to changes in health care. Is there a pattern? Who is running these ads? Identify the best and worst ads. Do these ads help or hurt the debate? Are they addressing the best arguments their respective side has to make?
