Universal Health Care

ABSTRACT
Universal access to medical care is a health care program that will afford all US citizens free medical care. This program is suggesting a removal of all medical insurance companies and third parties in the health care system, and a $10 tax increase in utility bills. Universal access medical care is about putting consumers in charge of health care.

UNIVERSAL ACCESS MEDICAL CARE
Universal access medical care is a program that will afford all citizens free medical care. Studies have shown that medical costs in the United States have tripled in recent years as indicated by Herzlinger:
“The health insurance system in the United States is broken, business and citizens are paying the price. Employers’ insurance premiums reached an estimate $45 billion in 2000, and then shot up again, at three times the rate of inflation in 2001.” (Let’s Put Consumers in Charge of Health care p. 44)
Universal access medical care will follow ethical theories of care approach for this program design and its implementation. Ethics of care emphasizes caring for the concrete well being (Velasquez p 102). Federal and State governments need to show that they care for their citizens by allowing free medical care to all. Consumers (citizens) have been burdened by medical costs that have been sky rocketing each passing year. This program will allow citizens to take control of their health care by applying pressure to the health care industry.
“When consumers apply pressure on an industry, whether it’s retailing or banking, cars or computers, it invariably produces a surge of innovations that increases productivity, reduces prices, improves quality and expands choices. The essential problem with the health care industry is that it has been shielded from consumer control.” (Let’s Put Consumers in Charge of Health care p. 45)
HEALTH CARE REVOLUTION
Universal access medical care is about a revolution to the health care industry. The revolution will make “health care providers responding to consumer demands ….. and to better quality health care and a more productive health care system.” (p. 52) Universal access medical care revolution will require an ethical approach from theories of compensatory justice. Compensatory justice is an approach which “fairly restores to a person (or society) what the person lost when he or she was wronged by someone else (or an industry) (Velasquez, 2006). In this case both the medical insurance companies and health care providers have been running healthcare programs to their advantage and robbed citizens of their right to decide and participate in medical care of their choosing and according to their needs.
UTILITY TAX INCREASE
The recent State Children Insurance Program (SCHIP) proposal which is still in the congressional discussion between the white house and the congress is one sure sign of our time that the revolution to our health care system is inevitable. SCHIP proposes a tax increase of about 70 cents to tobacco and alcohol products to cover medical insurance to the needy children and the children that can not afford other forms of other medical insurance. Universal access medical care is proposing a tax increase in utility bills (electricity, gas, telephone and water). A flat $10 increase in all utility bills per household will enable every house hold to access free medical care and cancel all these medical insurances. Studies have shown that medical insurance companies have been benefiting from medical enrollments and that consumers have been charged premiums instead of actual medical costs.
“In 2000, according to a study by the Kaisler Foundation, More that 60% of the employees have seen prices reflected factors other than the actual price of medical.” (p. 48)
According to Kaisler Foundation, an average household contributes for medical insurance between $35 to $150 each pay check. If we assumed that a house hold will have an average of three to four utility bills, then the amount paid to take care of medical care from the bills and taking control of the health care system will be cheaper than the current health care premiums that are paid by house holds. By taking control of the health care system, it means eliminating the bureaucracy of insurance companies and all third parties in the health care that collects from both consumers and providers.
A study conducted by Silverstein and Fisle, shows that a household per capital income has increased, while house hold size shrinks (Luxury for the Masses p. 53). The fact that house hold income has increase it means that an increase of $10 on utility bills in place of medical insurance can be afforded by all house hold.
“Real household income rose by more than 50% from 1970 to 2000. But averages do not tell the whole story, because house holds income for the top quintile, those earning more than 82,000 per year – rose at a much faster rate than for any other quintile.”(p. 52)
Removing health insurance from business will allow business to concentrate more on the goals and missions of their existence. Some business are not profitable because of the “burden of providing employee benefits is growing heavier for firms in the United States than it is for organizations in other countries.” (Moorhead and Griffin, 2001)
In alignment with the two theories of ethics that I have discussed above, this program will also take Kant theory of moral rights in three categorical stages as we develop the health program and in taking control of medical care industry.
1. Moral rights are tightly correlated with duties (Velasquez p. 74), in justifying actions to take control in health care system, Kant’s theory suggests that this right should be correlated with some kind of duty. Citizens will complete their end of the bargain (duty) by paying extra money in the utility bills as proposed above.
2. Moral rights provide individuals with autonomy and equality in the free pursuit of their interests (Velasquez p.75); in this stage the equality will be evidenced by all citizens receiving free medical care.
3. Moral rights provide a basis for justifying ones action and for invoking the protection or aid of others (Velasquez p. 75). Citizens’ actions to take control of the health care system are justified by the abuses that are coming from health insurance companies and providers and the need to get rid of third parties in the health system as discussed above.
CONCLUSION
Providing free medical access will help consumers take control of their health care. Taking control of health care is a theory that is supported by Thomke and Hippel in their study for customers as innovators, “listen carefully to what your customers want and then respond with new products that meet or exceed their needs.”(p. 74). What customers want right now is free medical access and this revolution will give them that because medical insurance companies have abandoned their efforts to understand what customers want.

References:
Herzlinger, Regina E. (July 2002) Let’s Put Consumers in Charge of Health Care.
Harvard Business Review. July 2002, 44 – 55.
Velasquez, Manuel G. (2006) Business Ethics Concepts and Cases. Upper Saddle River,
New Jersey: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Silverstain, Michael J., Fiske, Neil. (April 2003). Luxury for the Masses. Harvard
Business Review. April 2003, 48 – 57.
Moorhead, Gregory., Griffin, Ricky W. (2001) Organizational Behavior: Managing
People and Organizations. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Thomke, Stefan., Hippel, Eric Von. (April 2002) Customers as Innovators: A New Way
to Create Value. Harvard Business Review. April 2002, 74 – 81