I'm a Dedicated Capitalist, Yet Universal Medicare Is the Top Hope for US Health System

Out-of-pocket costs. Preferred providers. Non-preferred providers. Concierge medical services. Personal healthcare costs. Fixed payment. Shared insurance. Benefit advisers. Coverage agents. Healthcare consultants. Affordable Care Act. Health Maintenance Organization. Preferred Provider Organization. EPO. Point of Service. HDHP. Health Savings Account. Flexible Spending Account. HRA. EOB. Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. Small Business Health Options Program. Individual coverage. Dependent coverage. Premium tax credits.

Baffled? You should be. Who understands all this stuff? Certainly not the average business owner. Neither the average employee. Selecting the appropriate medical coverage for our business – or for households – appears to require it requires advanced expertise in medical insurance.

Our Medical System Isn't Just Complex, It's Costly

Based on a recent study, typical households spends $twenty-seven thousand each year on medical coverage (up 6% compared to last year). The average employer health insurance cost is projected to surpass $17,000 for each worker by 2026, an increase of 9.5% from 2025.

Now the government is shut down because partisan disputes over tax credits which analysts predict could cause a doubling of premiums for numerous US citizens.

When Will We Seriously Consider Universal Healthcare?

How soon might we seriously consider universal healthcare coverage here in America? I have to believe we're getting closer because this can't continue.

I'm not suggesting government-run medicine. I'm advocating that our already existing Medicare program – an insurance system – simply expand to include all citizens. Our infrastructure remains intact. How medical professionals get paid changes. Believe me, they will adjust.

How National Health Insurance Would Work

Universal healthcare coverage would require contributions from both employees and employers. In comparable systems, a worker making average wages must contribute about 5.3% to their healthcare. The company pays about thirteen point seventy-five percent.

Does this seem like a lot? Not if you contrast it to what average US resident spends. I can name multiple businesses who are easily contributing anywhere from eight to fifteen percent of payroll costs to their healthcare costs. Remember that in comprehensive systems, those payments also cover retirement benefits, sick pay, maternity leave and job loss protection in addition to funding medical services. When you add those costs compared with what we pay on retirement programs, job loss coverage and paid time off, the difference decreases.

Implementation for America

In the US, a national health premium would raise existing Medicare taxes, a framework already established. It should be means-based – wealthier individuals would pay more than lower-income earners. There would be both worker and company payments. And, like many federal defense, technology, social programs and transportation services, the system should be outsourced to third-party administrators instead of a government office.

Benefits for Small Businesses

A national health insurance program would be a huge benefit for small businesses such as my company. It would put small companies in equal competition against big corporations that can pay for better plans. It would make management significantly simpler (automatic payroll withholding remitted like social security and Medicare taxes, rather than individual transactions to benefit firms and coverage administrators).

It would make simpler to plan expenses our yearly costs, instead of going through the complex (and ineffective) theater of bargaining with the big insurance providers that we must do each year. Due to simplification, there would exist improved comprehension about benefits among workers – as opposed to the current system which require them to interpret the complexities of existing plans. Additionally there would definitely exist less liability for employers since we wouldn't have access to workers' health histories for risk assessment and different options.

Free-Market Viewpoint

I'm as pro-market as they get. But I've learned that government play important functions in our lives, from providing defense to supporting essential systems. Ensuring medical coverage for everyone through a national insurance system enhances economic foundations. It represents superior, simpler approach for entrepreneurs which hire the majority of American employees and generate half of our GDP. It enables employees to be healthier, come to work more often and be more productive.

Considering Challenges

Are there a million considerations I haven't covered? Of course there are. Given all the healthcare cost increases experienced recently, it's evident that the Affordable Care Act isn't functioning very well. And I realize that America isn't a compact European nation where major reforms are easier to implement. However extending universal Medicare, despite the additional taxes that would be incurred, would remain a superior and less expensive strategy for not only managing medical expenses and ensuring coverage to everyone.

Need for Honest Assessment

As Americans, we need to reduce national pride. America's medical care isn't exceptional. We rank significantly behind many other countries with the best healthcare in the world, based on major studies. Maybe one positive aspect amid current situation is that we undertake serious examination at ourselves and agree that big changes need to happen.