Here’s the deal. I’ve seen Michael Moore’s SiCKO movie that makes the case for the U.S. to move to a Universal Healthcare system, and I already had some feelings on the issue before I had ever seen it.

How can you help?
I’m searching for good articles, topics, essays, opinions on both sides of the issue. I’d like to find stuff that supports universal healthcare and stuff that is against universal healthcare. I’ve read quite a bit lately, and I’d like to hear both sides before sharing my thoughts. Once I get all the links, I’ll post them up for everyone to read in one place. Know of a good article? email me at russell.page(@)gmail.com.

Here’s a start.
Lowering the cost of healthcare (against Universal Healthcare)

Sicko? The truth about he US healthcare system (for Universal Healthcare)

Again, email me the good articles, and I’ll post them all here.

UPDATE:The info is starting to pour in . . .

For? Against? Watch and decide.

Capitalistic Healthcare Pokes it’s Head into Canada’s “Universal Healthcare” System
“… there are some 875,000 Canadians currently on the waiting list for referrals to specialists or for medical procedures. Our organization was formed in 2003 to help Canadians from coast to coast, to “Leave the queue” and take personal responsibility for their own private medical services.” – via Timely Medical Procedures.

Breaking Down the Uninsured – Could it Be Their Choice
- 45 million uninsured in U.S., according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
- 38 percent (17 million) of uninsured earn more than $50,000 a year.
- 20 percent (9 million) of the uninsured earn more than $75,000 per year.

Uninsured in America? Really? Are you sure?

(1) Matthew Miller, The Two Percent Solution: Fixing America’s Problems in Ways Liberals and Conservatives Can Love (New York: Public Affairs Books, 2003),pp. 112-13.

(2) See Carmen DeNavas-Walt, Bernadette D. Proctor and Cheryl Hill Lee, “Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2005,” U.S. Census Bureau, Department of Commerce, P60-231, August 2006, Table 8 (sub heading Household Income), page 22 (http://www.census.gov/prod/2006pubs/p60-231.pdf)

(3) Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey, It has spending for age 25 to 34. Unfortunately, it does not break down age 18 to 24 – but we can reasonably infer that spending for people in their early 20s is similar to mid-20s. (http://www.bls.gov/cex/2005/CrossTabs/agebyinc/x25to34.pdf)

(4) Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) FAQ, (http://www.emtala.com/faq.htm)

(5) The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association estimates that nearly one-third of the uninsured already qualify for public coverage such as Medicaid or S-CHIP. See “The Uninsured in America,” BlueCrossBlueShield Association, excerpt available at: http://www.bcbs.com/issues/uninsured/who-are-the-uninsured/uninsured_sec1.pdf

(6) John Goodman, Five Myths of Socialized Medicine, Cato’s Letter Winter 2005, page 1 (http://www.cato.org/pubs/catosletter/catosletterv3n1.pdf)

(7) “Catastrophe in Care”, June 2, 2005 Leo W. Banks, Tucson Weekly, (http://www.tucsonweekly.com/gbase/Currents/Content?oid=oid:69346)

(8) David Gratzer, The Cure: How Capitalism Can Save American Health Care (New York: Encounter Books, 2006), page 87.