Can someone answer this question....

[Guest]

Does Congress really have the power to create a universal health care system and require people to carry insurance?

I know the Congress is depending on Article I, Section 8. In part it reads reads: “The Congress shall have Power to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States.”

[Guest]

Does Congress really have the power to create a universal health care system and require people to carry insurance?

I know the Congress is depending on Article I, Section 8. In part it reads reads: “The Congress shall have Power to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States.”

I understand that it is unconstitutional but I don't think that will stop anyone. I am sure that it will go all the way to the supreme court.

Yoda

[Guest]

Personally, I think is it Constitutional" is an extremely minor part of the discussion. After all, the above-quoted part of the Constitution gives enough wiggle room defend the practice.

My attitude is that I see the handwriting on the wall. I'd like to see the debate framed differently.

One aspect I don't hear very much of is how we, as a country, can compete for human capital when all these other countries are providing the service. Even if that doesn't sway someone, then the fact that we pay more (#1 as a percentage of GDP) for health care and get less (as bad as 37th in the industrial world) should have people screaming.

IF we accept as read that some form of public health care is going to happen, then there's the following points to ponder.

- Qualifications. Stop the fallacy that "health care is a right". Health care requires a sacrific of some sort to provide, be it money to pay the provider or the provider's time and resources if volunteered. I'd say we should call it a *privilege* of being an American Citizen. As such, like driver's licenses, privileges can be revoked if abused.

- Coverage. How elective is "elective" and what should we cover? I know abortion will also be a HUGE debate - until you hit someone in the wallet. I can't speak for right now, this minute, but the last time I researched the subjct, abortions cost up to $600 (some areas as low as $300) while a live birth cost s MINIMUM of $5000 back in 1987 and my younger daughter's birth cost a LOT more than that (perhaps into 6 figures though I never saw the final numbers) because of complications. (This is why I dismiss anyone who argues against abortion solely because it's supposedly such a profit center for doctors - follow the money, it isn't - the money is in live births)

Then we have to decide just what level we're going to fund it at.. This is the argument they frequently have in Canada - measuring the waiting lists for various procedures.

Is it Constitutional? Well, you'd probably need to have a lot more strongly negative argument than "it only 'probably' is".