Ourview
Uninsured
may have hope
Universal health care in California would
cost us very little. Bruce Bodaken, chairman
and CEO of Blue Shield of California, commissioned
a study in December to tally the cost of
making health insurance a mandatory part
of life in our state.
The cost analysis of the plan was led by
Kenneth E. Thorpe, chairman of the Department
of Health Policy and Management at Emory
University’s Rollins School of Public Health.
The results of this study are surprising.
Although a $7.8 billion tab sounds daunting,
Thorpe suggested that the cost could easily
be divided between the state government,
which would pay $4.5 billion; businesses,
which would pay about $3.2 billion; and
individuals, who would pay $63 million.
Bodaken, a seemingly unlikely advocate of
universal health care, said that a one percent
sales tax or a 0.7 percent hike in the state
income tax could help pay for health coverage
for California’s 6.6 million uninsured residents.
Does this sound like too much? Not by any
means. We are the only industrialized country
that does not provide for some form of comprehensive
health care coverage. Americans have an
inherent resistance to taxes and impositions
that dates back to our revolution.
We live in a very individualistic society,
and that’s a good thing when it comes to
improving one’s own situation. But we cannot
afford to exist in our bubble any longer,
Sept. 11 should have taught us that.
If we must look for more pragmatic reasons
to help our fellow citizens, than we should
take into account our economy. The more
healthy people we have, the more good workers
can be employed, which in turn helps our
economy and improves upon our own lives.
Critics argue that it is the wrong time
to address an issue such as universal health
care because of our current budget deficit
of $35 billion. But when will be the right
time? The 6.6 million men, women and children
currently suffering from the inability to
see a doctor when they are sick do not feel
better simply because they know we are in
a budget crisis. Too many of us take for
granted our ability to see a doctor or visit
the emergency room.
Bodaken made an excellent point at the Sacramento
Press Club.
“We believe it is a small price to pay for
something as essential as education, or
maybe even more so,” Bodaken said. “What
if we said one in four kids don’t have to
go to school? We wouldn’t tolerate it. So
why do we tolerate this?”
We shouldn’t tolerate this. California should
lead the way towards a more progressive
society in which every person has the right
to good health. How we do it can and should
be debated. But we should do it. Why not
now?
|
