Debate Assignment

Socialized Healthcare
Mary Price Duncan
10/28/15
University of Kentucky

The debate on healthcare has been one that has prevailed throughout history, no system
has proven to be flawless and its likely that none will. The definition of socialized medicine as
provided by Marrium-Websters Medical Dictionary is medical and hospital services for the
members of a class or population administered by an organized group (as a state agency) and
paid for from funds obtained usually by assessments, philanthropy, or taxation. My partner and I
stand in a firm negation to the statement that universal healthcare provision is the solution to the
concerns of the uninsured in the U.S. for three key reasons; it would lead to an increase in
taxation, the U.S. deficit cannot withstand the costs associated with providing universal care, and
the medical system would degrade under a socialized approach.
Currently in the United States, the average amount of payroll taxes that are taken out fall
around 15%, but for those in countries that do provide universal healthcare the payroll taxes that
are removed are around 40% (Gregory, 2013). This nation is facing struggles economically, and
the supporters of universal healthcare seek to assist those who cant afford insurance. While this
is a great idea on paper, the increase of taxes would push an already struggling middle class into
poverty. Currently, much of the middle class relies on the tax and transfer system to stay afloat,
meaning that they receive certain aid if they qualify, such programs include TANF and SNAP
(Harris & Kearney, 2013). If taxes were to increase further, these programs would struggle to aid
those in need as the needy population would grow and more and more families would require
targeted tax benefit programs. The goal of universal health care is to aid and assist those
who cannot afford care, but the system would in turn create a larger portion of our population to
fall below the federal poverty line.
It is no secret that the United States is in debt, and the government spending hasnt
slowed despite the major deficit that continues to increase. Russel Korobkin wrote in the

Michigan Law Review that the spending for programs such as Medicaid and other programs that
help to provide healthcare has risen from 10% to 21% of the federal budget since 1985
(Korobkin, 2014). This number would only increase if federal spending was directed toward a
socialized healthcare approach. The United States controls the economy, as the issuer of the
worlds reserve funds we have the privilege of borrowing our own currency at interest rates that
are artificially low, but this luxury cannot prevent us from the dangers of debt that include an
increased risk of financial crisis and hinder future growth for our country, making another global
superpower taking our place a feasible alternative (Lam, 2013).
The final reason as to why socialized medicine would detriment our nation that I will
focus on for this debate is its impact on the quality of medical care received. The first way this
can occur is with wait times for medical attention. Canada is one country that has a universal
healthcare system, and wait times there averaged 8.6 weeks while patients in the U.S. under
private healthcare received attention within 18 days (Hawkins, 2014). Quality of care can also be
hindered when looking at the likelihood of doctor shortages. These shortages have been
predicted by medical associations and have been proven when looking at other nations who have
provided care for their populations through government aid. England is one example, and they
have experienced shortfalls to the point of having only 2.71 doctors per 1000 people. The
Association of American Medical Colleges predicted a lack of 63,000 doctors by 2015 due to the
large growth of patient population that would come with the affordable care act (Mann, 2011).
This problem can easily lead to people being treated for their cases only, leading to a lack in
preventative care that could greatly impact our nations overall health.
The most common argument in favor of a socialized approach to health care is the many
lives that could be saved. While initially many people who could not receive care would be

helped, wait times would increase and the likelihood of seeing a specialist would decrease
substantially. Preventative care would also see a great downfall, which could lead to major
problems in the long run regarding things such as heart health and cancer treatment. Also, as
previously stated, many people could likely fall below the poverty line. This could easily lead
them to needing to lead live styles that are less healthy but more cost-effective.
Universal health care would have a negative impact on our nation today for many
reasons. Despite its noble efforts to provide care to populations that currently lack it, the benefits
dont outweigh the costs. A move to universal health care would impact an already weak
economy, would lead to a lack of quality care for the population as a whole, and would increase
taxes- pushing an already struggling middle class into poverty. The arguments against universal
health care have merit and arent all moral based arguments against welfare, they take an
educational economic look at a fragile financial and health system currently held by our nation.

References
Paul Roderick Gregory, "Obamacare a Mess? Liberals Say Go Single Payer," forbes.com, Oct.
28, 2013
Harris, B., & Kearney, M. (2013, December 4). A Dozen Facts about America's Struggling
Lower-Middle-Class. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
Merritt Hawkins, "Physician Appointment Wait Times and Medicaid and Medicare Acceptance
Rates," merritthawkins.com, 2014
Russell Korobkin, "Comparitie Effectiveness Research as Choice Architecture: The Behavioral
Law and Economics Solution to the Health Care Cost Crisis," Michigan Law Review,
Feb. 2014
Lam, J. (2014, March 18). The Great Recession and the Dangers of Greater U.S. Government
Debt. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
Sarah Mann, "Addressing the Physician Shortage under Reform," aamc.org, May 6, 2011

Review of What I Learned

For this assignment I decided to select the point of view that I was less likely to agree
with. I have always been on the fence regarding this issue and after doing more research I feel
like there is a solution that is less drastic than universal health care such as reforming our current
policies such as Medicaid. The main point that lead my views to this was the argument of how
the quality of care would decrease. I read some interesting perspectives and looked at nations
that do currently have a socialized approach, and I saw that quality definitely suffered. Wait
times increasing is one major problem, and for many health problems this waiting leads them to
be in more danger. Plus, I think that the system would work better in a nation that wasnt facing
as much economic struggle. I dont think that our current system could handle and increase of
taxes or of our federal debt.