Over the last several years, the healthcare cost has risen at a much faster rate than the GDP.  Many can not afford healthcare anymore.  Managed care introduced to reduce cost, while worked for a while, has failed to deliver the cost control.

We need healthcare for all!  I believe that it is a basic human need and must be made a government responsibility. 

Those who think private insurance can do better need to compare government run programs with those private managed ones.  “No health care system in any western democracy has yet managed to produce excellence by relying primarily on market forces,” said Dr. Donald M.Berwick, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), a Boston-based not-for-profit organization leading the improvement of health care throughout the world.  And many of us, thanks God no longer a majority, believe that US healthcare is best.

We should create at least two tiers of healthcare to allow flourishment of private sector while government guarantees the basic health security.  Whatever may the meaning of Basic Healthcare be, beyond that should be provided by private institutions.

Dr. Berwick says that our Rescue Care, e.g. trauma, emergency, etc. may be good but very few of us are that consumer.  For most of the consumers, we are not at that end of the spectrum.  We need screening, time to time visit to doctors, etc.  At things like this, we are no where best in the world.  Dr.  Berwick goes on to say “George Halverson, CEO at Kaiser, says if you are diabetic, the chance that you are going to get good health care is about eight  percent. He goes on to call it criminal.”

There are of course about 300 million people who have insurance and about 250 million who have somewhat better quality of insurance.  So if we go by opinion, many of these might think that our healthcare is the best. These may have louder voices but they are no the one necessarily who have compassionate knowledge of the crisis experienced.  The basic human needs are not something need to be done by popular vote.  Even if one person dies, the system is broken.

Many say that, we have the healthcare system best in the world.  WRONG!  In addition, even if you think it is the best, it is not available to many.  What is usefulness of a product or service despite its greatness if it can not be availed.  We need to redefine the meaning of best!

Fixing healthcare has economical impact.  It will improve productivity, create healthier population, drive innovation, create better family values, increase nation’s economic security, and…….

We need to throw away the current system and redesign a new one.  We need a universal healthcare.  The basic human health must be protected and that is a government responsibility. 

Universal healthcare, it is no longer a choice.  It is an American necessity.