Nothing about America's ever-expanding welfare state has been more egregious than its unflinching cultivation of personal irresponsibility. From able-bodied people getting welfare or disability payments, to single women having illegitimate children, much of what we used to consider unacceptable or immoral behavior has been de-stigmatized.
Our shame-free society must be kept in mind during the GOP's effort to repeal and replace ObamaCare. That's because the Left's greatest weapon--one also embraced by several weak-kneed Republicans--is the idea that if whatever emerges in ObamaCare's place leaves even one less person without healthcare insurance, America becomes a nation of heartless Cossacks willing to let people "die in the streets."
A doctor's commitment to medicine is one thing. A commitment to involuntary servitude demanded by their fellow Americans is quite another.
Note that I said healthcare insurance. Ever since the passage of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act in 1986, no one, even non-citizens, with an emergency medical condition can be turned away from any ER anywhere in America. Even if they have no way of paying for the treatment they receive. Thus in one sense, the nation already has universal healthcare when it matters most.
Given this reality, it is unsurprising that millions of Americans consider that kind of coverage--along with an exponential list of other healthcare demands--to be a "right," like their Constitutionally-protected freedom of speech or their right to bear arms. That it is nothing of the sort, that one cannot compel a doctor to perform a medical procedure against his or her will, means nothing to those who assert that they are "entitled" to receive such treatment. Millions of Americans simply assume the medical profession will cater to their wishes, even as a growing doctor shortage suggests otherwise, be it one created by an aging population--or the uncomfortable possibility that many would-be doctors see the totalitarian handwriting on the social justice wall.
A doctor's commitment to medicine is one thing. A commitment to involuntary servitude demanded by their fellow Americans is quite another.
In reality, one of the essential ingredients missing from the nation's healthcare debate is personal responsibility. Under ObamaCare, one can literally wait until one has a serious, or life-threatening condition before signing up for health insurance. One need only imagine being able to buy homeowner's insurance while one's house is burning down to understand the fatal flaw in this arrangement.
Those who choose not to buy healthcare coverage they can otherwise afford
The left thought such a flaw would be mitigated by forcing people to sign up for health insurance, or pay a fine for failing to do so. Yet when the cost of insurance is exponentially higher than the fine, only leftists remain surprised that millions of healthy Americans opted for the latter, thereby insuring ObamaCare's current death spiral.
Republicans are attempting to mitigate this reality by insisting those who wait to sign up for a policy pay an increased premium when they do. Incentive is always better than coercion, but it is only half the equation. It is worth noting that when an "insensitive" Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) suggested Americans might have to forgo a cell phone to pay for their healthcare coverage, all hell broke loose.
That's because Chaffetz touched on the other half of the equation, which is the idea Americans must prioritize their wants and needs, much like those who understand the rent and other bills must be paid before heading out to dinner or buying the latest, greatest gadget. That such prioritization is viewed with utter contempt by so many people is a great indicator of how self-entitled and irresponsible Americans have become, and how easily they can rationalize both.
If we're going to have genuine healthcare reform in this country, a critical component of it will be disabusing people of this execrable mindset. While there are many Americans who cannot afford healthcare who must be covered, there is a vast difference between them and those who choose not to buy healthcare coverage they can otherwise afford. It must be made clear to the latter group that while they are free to make that choice, the consequences of it may very well be financial ruin in the event of an unforeseen tragedy. Financial ruin that will not be mitigated by the government.
Support Canada Free Press
An I-phone or healthcare coverage? Your choice--and your consequences
If the truth hurts? Too bad. It's about time millions of wrong-headed, self-entitled Americans who can afford paying for their healthcare needs--but decide not to--were tossed off the free lunch bandwagon. No matter what your helicopter parents, college professors or vote-grubbing politicians might have told you, life comes with obligations. Unavoidable obligations in many cases.
America will always have a safety net for the genuinely needy--unless we bankrupt the nation catering to those who embrace personal irresponsibility. And while there are a myriad of details that would vastly improve the current GOP healthcare proposals--such as provider price transparency and requiring Congress to use the same system they create for us--no successful system of healthcare delivery can withstand hordes of people who believe they're entitled to something--or is that everything--for nothing.
An I-phone or healthcare coverage? Your choice--and your consequences.
