Change is ok!

If I had 10 minutes I would say:

The U.S. is spending more money than any other country on health care, however we do not have very much to show for it. Our system is clearly unsustainable leaving around 45 million Americans uninsured. We fail to see that universal health care is a good and necessary measure, even though it is working in other countries. The time to act is now, we must take it upon ourselves to help fellow Americans and make it so that no one is denied the right to staying healthy. One effective method we could use is to look outside our borders at what other countries are doing and how it is actually working.

Our system focuses on treatment as opposed to prevention, causing prices to spiral upwards even more so. Instead of putting most of our funding into programs that would prevent, educate, and promote- we wait until the individual gets very sick. Looking at systems abroad, we see how flawed this is. In the United Kingdom, doctors are provided with monetary incentives for keeping their patients healthy. They are rewarded for any preventative measures they implement. I believe this same method should be implemented in the U.S.

In addition, I realize that the U.S is founded upon principles of individuality and capitalism. I understand that this is an integrally rooted part of our culture. We want government out of the picture as much as feasibly possible. However, I would like to say that if we look abroad- the government is very involved in the health care system, and it does not mean that the government has taken over those countries and has left the people powerless. Theoretically speaking, it is the government's responsibility after all to take care of its people, otherwise it is not doing its job and it is failing to address the people's needs. That is why we created government right? To appoint leaders who would voice the opinions of the unheard, to protect the rights of the people, to promote the well-being and success of all citizens, and to implement what is the best interest of us as the people. Why then, are we saying: "government involvement in health care? Heck no! " We need to look at countries such as China, Japan, and Germany and realize that the government is involved and it is not a bad thing. I am not saying that the government needs to take complete control of the system, I am simply saying that the government needs to get involved and we need to be ok with that.