Health Care: Universally Important

After watching Sicko, Dead Meat, and reading "Michael Moore and the Beige Bomber," I have come to believe that the United States has a corrupt and destructive health care system that must be fixed or replaced in order to preserve the health, and even sanity, of our nation and its people. Although Michael Moore presents an excellent argument in Sicko, providing examples of how universal health care has prevailed in France and other countries in Europe, it may be best to work on reform, as the "Beige Bomber" article argues. Yes, no one is required to pay for health care in France, yet taxes are extremely high for other things. And in China, where free universal health care reigns, doctors and hospitals are sliding into the pit of debt. In addition, places such as Canada have dangerously long waiting lists for medical procedures just because they have a "universal system." There is usually a silver lining to every cloud, but one must not forget the cloud itself. In all aforementioned cases, the cloud is comprised of long waits, debt, and high taxes. This should logically bring one to the conclusion that our health care system needs to be reformed. As Sicko shows, an American, or any person for that matter, should not be denied health insurance based on a preexisting condition, he or she should not have to move in with children because of medical debts, and no one should have to die because of these decisions. The deaths that do occur occur because health insurance companies want to make maximum profit. And essentially killing others for profit is so anti-American that it can make one "sick." The best thing for our country to do is to reform our health care system (completely abolishing it will only cause more problems). The most important lesson, in the bigger scheme of things, that we can learn from those countries with universal health care is not universal health care in itself but rather the not-for-profit care that they provide their citizens. That is the best health care of all.