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The time has come for universal, government-sponsored healthcare that provides equal treatment for every single person, man, woman, and child living in the United States. As a country, we have held out for too long to the belief that our system works and is preferable to a universal plan. With costs rising and people being denied coverage, the time has come for a change. We are the last civilized western society that doesn't have some form of universal government healthcare. This is not because our system is better, it's because those who have the power to fix it refuse to do so.

It's easy for the "decision makers" of this country to ignore this problem. They fly around on corporate jets and see doctors on a whim, never dealing with rising deductibles and premiums, medical expenses not covered, or the fear people have that if they are injured they might lose their home. This is happening in our country, and it's a shame that the cry to take action isn't louder.

When Hilary Clinton took on healthcare as an issue in the 90s, the industry tried to destroy her for it. They launched a smear campaign that practically undid her political career. But more importantly, it perpetuated the idea in the American peoples' minds that a for-profit healthcare system is preferable to a universal one.

But when you break the system down to its core, profit should never be considered when discussing our health and well-being. Consider the fire department. They are not a for-profit venture. Imagine if your house caught fire and when the fire trucks arrived they asked to see your Fire Extinguishing insurance card. This would never happen, because the belief is that everyone has the equal right to have a fire in their home put out by professionals. We all equally share the burden through our tax dollars because we don't want to leave anyone out in the cold to watch their house burn down because they couldn't afford to call the fire department.

Why is our health any different? In our current system, if a Congressman breaks his arm, he gets the best treatment available. He'll get x-rays and see the best doctors. But if a poor child in the inner city breaks her arm, she may not get to go to the hospital at all. Her parents may not be able to afford insurance, and they certainly can't afford a few-thousand dollar hospital bill. So that child may have to suffer through the pain and have the bone heal incorrectly, and her arm may never be right. All because that same Congressman who got the medical attention he needed doesn't think that the child has the same right to medical care as he does. Why? Because her parents don't have enough money. That simply doesn't make any sense to me. And that's our current system.

Learn more about this author, Sean Curtis.
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