Glad to hear your wife is in remission. It is funny those that love Obamacare are those who's premiums dropped compared to those who's premiums increased. There are several reasons why universal health care would not work for us here. One of which is the size of our population. No industrialized nation with universal health care comes close to us in population. That said here is a site that gives an honest evaluation of Universal health care.
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Advantages
Universal health care lowers health care costs for an economy. The government controls the price of medication and medical services through negotiation and regulation.
It eliminates the administrative costs of dealing with different private health insurers. Doctors only deal with one government agency. U.S. doctors must deal with many private insurance companies, Medicare, and Medicaid. It standardizes billing procedures and coverage rules. Companies don't have to hire staff to deal with different health insurance company rules.
It forces hospitals and doctors to provide the same standard of service at a low cost. In a competitive environment like the United States, health care providers focus on new technology. They offer expensive services and pay doctors more. They try to compete by targeting the wealthy. They charge more to get a higher profit. It leads to higher costs.
Universal health care creates a healthier workforce. Studies show that preventive care reduces the need for expensive emergency room usage. Before Obamacare, 46% of emergency room patients went because they had no other place to go. They used the emergency room as their primary care physician. This health care inequality is a big reason for the rising cost of medical care.
Early childhood care prevents future social costs. These include crime, welfare dependency, and health issues. Health education teaches families how to make healthy lifestyle choices, preventing chronic diseases.
Governments can impose regulations and taxes to guide the population toward healthier choices. Regulations make unhealthy choices, such as drugs, illegal. Sin taxes, such as those on cigarettes and alcohol, make them more expensive.
Disadvantages
Universal health care forces healthy people to pay for others' medical care. Chronic diseases, like diabetes and heart disease, make up 85% of health care costs. These diseases can often be prevented with lifestyle choices. The sickest 5% of the population consumes 50% of total health care costs. The healthiest 50% consume only 3% of the nation's health care costs.
With free universal health care, people may not be as careful with their health. They don't have the financial incentive to do so. Without a copay, people might overuse emergency rooms and doctors.
Most universal health systems report long wait times for elective procedures. The government focuses on providing basic and emergency health care.
Governments limit payment amounts to keep costs low. Doctors have less incentive to provide quality care if they aren't well paid. They might spend less time per patient to keep their costs down. They have less funding for new life-saving technologies.
Health care costs overwhelm government budgets. For example, some Canadian provinces spend 40% of their budget on health care. That reduces funding for other programs like education and infrastructure.
To cut costs, the government may limit services with a low probability of success. It may not cover drugs for rare conditions. It may prefer palliative care over expensive end-of-life care. On the other hand, the U.S. medical system does a heroic job of saving lives, but at a cost. Care for patients in the last six years of life makes up one-fourth of the Medicare budget. In their last month of life, half go to the emergency room. One-third wind up in the intensive care unit and one-fifth undergo surgery."
https://www.thebalance.com/universal-health-care-4156211
