Government Health Care a Universal Failure
By Goldwater Institute: (05/11/07)
Government provided health care not the answer to health care challenges - In a recent Arizona Republic column, state Representative Phil Lopes called for universal health care. But, the Lopes proposal confuses government paid health services with universal health care. As Europe demonstrates, millions regularly go without good health care under government paid systems.
According to 2004 survey only 22 percent of Spaniards think their universal care system offers "satisfactory" service. It is certainly unsatisfactory that citizens there have to wait months for a simple test like an MRI. In England, patients must wait nearly a year for hip and knee replacements.
In Spain everyone pays taxes for the universal health care system. There is, however, a select group of people who get to choose. Central government civil servants can opt-out of the public system and have the government pay for their private insurance. 91 percent of civil servants choose private insurance. That is quite an endorsement of the free market's ability to meet consumers needs better than socialized medicine.
Health care services need to be accessible and affordable. But, a government takeover of the industry is not the answer.
Noah Clarke is an economist with the Goldwater Institute.
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