Quote:I don't hear anyone saying doctors should not be compensated by any stretch of the imagination. 

 

A bunch of wealthy guys that could afford healthcare at the time while writing a document that they intended to be fluid and in some cases completely replaced from time to time didn't think to explicit state healthcare as a right and instead chose very broad words? This should shock nobody. I think healthcare is essential to both life and happiness and aids greatly to liberty. 

 

Again, saying that healthcare is a "right" is completely false.  If it is a "right", then you are saying the people have a "right" to the services of doctors, nurses and medical facilities.

 

Basic rights are met under the law in the current system.  A person is not denied the right to life (except in the case of abortions, but that's a whole other topic).  A person is not denied liberty as long as they follow the law, and a person is not denied the pursuit of happiness.

 

And just a side note.  The men that wrote our founding documents were not necessarily "wealthy".  

 

Quote:Have you seen a hospital bill recently?  Sure, they have to accept you. Unless you are an undocumented immigrant, you still have to pay them (outrageous fees).  


A friend of mine is Hypoglycemic.  She was uninsured several years ago when she passed out one day and someone called an ambulance.  She stayed in the hospital a couple of days, and when she got out her bills were outrageously expensive.  


My wife is fortunate enough to have pretty much the best health insurance there is (Anthem Blue Cross), I remember looking at some of the amounts that the hospital was asking for from the insurance company when we had our children, and how much the insurance company paid.  If we were uninsured, I probably would have had to go to the hospital from fainting myself.  (And incurred more of a bill in doing so)


I think Doctors should be compensated.  (My mother-in-law is an Internist, so I'm certainly pro-doctor)  And I think they should be well compensated. What they do is very important.   At the same time I think many of these high costs need to be mitigated.  You also have high cost of medicine.  Many uninsured or underinsured people forego important medical treatment because of cost.  A lot of bankruptcies in the US are due to medical costs.   My uninsured friend mentioned above is still uninsured (though that's changing soon, since she got married) and she refused to pretty much go to the doctor unless absolutely forced (such as when she broke her leg, or passed out and had no choice)  It's not good that some people go to the doctor for every little cough, but it's also not good that people avoid necessary medical care due to fear of costs as well.  


 

 

I have not only seen hospital bills, but also regular doctor bills (almost too often).  Want to take a guess as to why those bills are as high as they are?  It's pretty much due to over-regulation and liability.  Throw in the cost of education to either be in the medical field, or even a technician or engineer certified to work on/develop/service medical equipment.

 

Then you have the fact that people will use an ER for their medical needs that don't pay any of the bill whatsoever.  That cost has to be made up somehow.

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