Nearly 50 million Americans are currently without health insurance, and many with insurance are still struggling to pay their medical bills. Everyone agrees that healthcare should be accessible to all, but the debate still rages on as to whether a universal system would be a wise or realistic solution. Is universal healthcare the remedy for what ails America?
One frequently asked question is, "Who will pay for the care of those who need it but cannot afford it?"
The short answer is, "Anyone who wishes to do so."
If someone
incurs an unfortunate random hardship (even though it is no fault of
his own), it does not create an automatic obligation for anyone else to
pay for it. Depending on the exact circumstances, I might be willing to
voluntarily donate my own time/money to help him out. As a physician, I have gladly provided discounted or charity care to patients more time than I can count. The same is true
for nearly every other physician I know.
So
if someone developed a bad disease that would cost him $100k, and
either didn't get insurance or couldn't get insurance, then he
essentially has to rely on the voluntary charity of others. His need (genuine as it may be), does not create a right to someone else's property or time.
Furthermore, the very fact that such examples tug at the sympathies of
normal decent Americans also means that those Americans will be
forthcoming with voluntary charity. In general, Americans have
been extraordinarily benevolent about voluntarily donating their time
and money for innocent victims of natural disasters, disease, and
man-made harms (such as 9-11 or the Oklahoma City bombings).
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