by D Par

Created on: July 25, 2009

Yes, Congress should help the uninsured by expanding existing government programs. This is for a simple fact at this core of this issue.

Health care is right. Everyone has a right to be healthy and to be helped in times of sickness and ailment. Soldiers get care and attention when they get wounded in war. Why can't citizens get the same help when their lives are at-risk? These people are just as important and should be valued. Some will call this "entitlement", but call it what you will, health care should be provided for every legal resident of this great country.

Congress can't leave middle class Americans alone in the vast ocean of health care, where insurance companies confuse and fleece customers. Consumers are at the mercy of for-profit companies for their health care, which creates a massive conflict of interest. That creates all these "pre-existing conditions" that health care companies use to milk every dime from sick customers. Yes, these companies are just doing what any capitalist business would do, but that means that Congress has to protect these people.

Furthermore, a sick person hurts the economy, so the government benefits from keeping its people healthy. A sick person can't go to work (thus hurting the productivity of the company) or spend money to stimulate the economy. The double whammy is that uninsured workers have to go to the emergency room, actually costing the government more than if they could just schedule an appointment with a doctor. It's like the saying says, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." By giving people coverage and fighting disease early, the US can save all the money that it takes to try to cure diabetes, obesity, cancer, and more in their late stages, where care costs the most.

The people who need the help the most are the ones that are down and out. Those that are crushed by expenses and unemployment. Ultimately, the people will decide. They will be heard. They will get what they ask for. They deserve whatever they ask for. That's the role of government: to listen to the people.

Right now, people are clamoring for coverage of the uninsured. However that gets done, whether it is universal health care through a single payer system or something else, is not fully clear at this moment. But one thing is clear, the American people want everyone covered, so that must be respected.

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