Universal victims

A report by The Associated Press this past weekend revealed 150,000 medical patients in India last year were foreigners, many of them from the United States.\nWhy would an American travel all the way to India for medical services?\nIt's cheaper.\nAs of 2003, Americans paid 79 percent more for health insurance than they did in 1996. The average employee also paid $1,008 more for family coverage.\nBut here's the real kicker: The average American, even with medical coverage, is just one serious illness away from bankruptcy, according to a Harvard University study.\nThis is a problem not just for all of America's lower- and middle-class citizens, but one that could potentially affect our country's culture. Lack of affordable health care could drive away those who could contribute to our artistic and intellectual achievements. In 2004, The Pitch magazine published a story about Heather Cave, an artist diagnosed with cervical cancer, and without the funds to pay for chemotherapy. Cave just managed to pay for medical treatment through contributions from fellow artists.\nBut not all artists are quite so lucky. For some people, pursuing a love for art is not worth the risk of going without health insurance. As a result, potential artists may forgo their preferred career in favor of a more practical one that would ensure them the luxury of health insurance.\nStill, as Harvard's study shows, even those of us fortunate enough to be covered are not completely in the clear.\nAnd this is completely unacceptable.\nIn Canada and the United Kingdom, health care is free and universal. In the eyes of their doctors, the penniless homeless man is equal to the CEO billionaire. The United States, meanwhile, remains the only industrialized country in which being a citizen does not guarantee medical coverage. Providing all citizens with the health care they deserve is not impossible, but requires some major governmental incentive.\nOur president does not believe that a universal health care system will solve our problems, but rather states, "Health care reform must begin with Medicare." \nAnd while I agree that the health of our nation's elderly is important, better Medicare doesn't help our country's poor. Worse, Bush's 2006 fiscal budget proposes cuts of up to $60 billion in Medicaid funding during the next 10 years. Thus, those who need health care assistance the most will be left with even less.\nThere is no reason why a student wanting to pursue a music career should have to go without medical coverage. And there is no reason why one unfortunate illness should leave a person completely bankrupt. Though the going will be slow, the government could take steps toward financing universal health care by instating a progressive income tax strictly for that purpose.\nAnd while universal health care would result in higher taxes and the potential bankruptcy of many insurance companies, which is what turns many away from the idea, in the long run, these consequences are just a small price to pay for the health of our citizens.