[Jean]

Since everyone will take advantage of the health care system at some point in their life, doesn't it make sense that they have a way to pay for it?
"Many people pay cash for it. So no."

I'm willing to wave the mandate if you put $20k in a retainer account. Sound fair?

You also aren't taking serious medical conditions into account, which is what insurance is meant to be for. I doubt you plan to plan to pay cash when you have a heart attack and need a $150k surgery.

Think about life time expenses here....not just "I'm 30 and not sick"

[dyrrtysouthchyck]

Many people pay cash for it. So no.

Even with Obamacare there are many exceptions made for who is mandated to have insurance or provide their employees insurance. Those exceptions are pretty disgusting.

Why does it make sense to make somebody pay more for their health care, if they would rather just pay it out of pocket? You do realize that the only way health insurance works is if most people pay more in than they will use, right?


***Many is not a misnomer, if you need the definition I can get it for you.

You are hurting those people you think you are helping, those young people that make very little money. Forcing them to buy insurance is just draining money they do not have. The younger people spend much less on health care and are far better off managing there own money.

****I am thinking of lifetime expenses. That is exactly what I said before. Health insurance works is if most people pay more in than they will use, IN THEIR LIFETIME.

Why a 20K retainer? Do you hate poor people? Are you on the side of the rich? You are intentionally screwing the poor people, forcing them to buy insurance they do not need.

And FINALLY it is UNCONSTITUTIONAL!

[Brian A]

Yes.

"Many" in the first answer is a misnomer.

The vast majority of people who do not have health insurance have no way to pay for health care. A very small portion of people without health insurance do not have it because they are rich enough to pay cash.

[Laxmi]

The US pays about 6 times as much for the same health care as any other country in the world. Doesn't that make you wonder why? Don't you think someone should tackle that before mandating that people buy very expensive health insurance which will undoubtedly change the quality of life for most people in this country? Do we pay more here so all other countries can pay less? Is that fair?

I just saw in the news where some doctors will only take cash now rather than insurance because the insurance companies are screwing them. All major insurance companies have just raised their rates in January anywhere from 18-49% and are talking about another increase. What do you make of that? Also as of January, you can no longer buy an insurance policy on your child. You have to buy it for the whole family or do without. Don't believe me? Look it up.

[hazelwoodstasia]

Sounds like the same argument for Social Security, and look how that baby's going. I've dumped a couple of hundred thousand into that little fella and now it's starting to look like I'm going to get squat out of it. If I want health insurance to pay for my health care, then I'll pay for it on my own (and I do). I don't need, or want, the government to make me do it.

[txguy8800]

"You also aren't taking serious medical conditions into account, which is what insurance is meant to be for."
This used to be true but is no longer. Now insurance is like a discount card. A patient used to go to a doctor for a check-up and pay cash, now that same patient files a claim to his insurance. Many states mandate that insurance companies cover check-ups. If insurance companies are mandated to pay, they negotiate with doctors for a price. The government negotiates with doctors for a price lower than the insurance companies. The doctors either stop providing that service if they do not earn enough at it to cover expenses OR they make up the difference elsewhere, usually with uninsured patients who are paying cash the old-fashioned way.
IF health insurance were actually insurance against serious medical conditions, everything would be much cheaper.

[pickmefirstplz]

You have to understand, there's nothing magic about insurance that makes health care affordable. Magic money doesn't get added to insurance pools to pay doctors when people get sick. The money that pays the doctors comes from those who pay premiums.

What insurance does is spread the expense when there's a large medical bill. Think of it as people pooling together and if someone gets sick (like cancer) that costs a lot of money, the expense is shared by everyone in the pool. It's sort of like gambling. You pay into the pool and if you're unlucky one to get sick, then you don't get slammed with a monstrous medical bills.

The problem with the mandate is that there are lots of people who are "30 and not sick" who just don't really need health insurance. There is also no mechanism in place for the federal government to require it. The constitution (the rules that the government has to follow) provides a list of things the government is allowed to do. Requiring people to buy something from someone is not included in that list of things they're allowed to do. This is why all those states took the federal government to court and why the judge ruled in their favor and found the bill to be unconstitutional.