Pros for Universal Healthcare in the U.S.

The United States Census Bureau estimates there were over 45 million Americans without adequate health insurance as of 2004. In such a climate, many Americans believe that the United States should have universal health care coverage. Whether you are in favor of universal care, opposed or aren't sure which side you are on, knowing the pros for universal health care in the U.S. will make your arguments stronger or help you make up your mind.

Cost

• The cost of health care has increased from $714 billion in 1990 to $2.3 trillion in 2008, according to kaiseredu.org. This places an enormous burden on employers who provide coverage as well as individuals who must buy their health care coverage themselves on the open market. Proponents of universal health care claim that universal coverage would lower the cost of health care for everyone. This is because rather than individuals and smaller groups buying coverage, everyone would be in the same group buying coverage together.

Coverage Already Universal

• Randall Hoven, writing for the conservative website American Thinker, described the American health care system as "the worst of both worlds," adding "we are paying for universal health coverage, but not getting it." This refers to the fact that anyone requiring urgent care who shows up at a hospital must, by law, be treated at that hospital or transferred to another facility. Further, the federal and state governments already provide a variety of mandates regarding what types of care insurers and health care facilities must provide.

Efficiency

• Because the law mandates that all who show up at a hospital requiring care must be treated, many people put off getting treated for simple ailments and injuries until they become much bigger problems. Hospital care is not the most cost-effective treatment for a number of problems. The fact that some people rely upon hospital care as a primary physician increases the health care cost for everyone. The Connecticut Coalition for Universal Health Care estimates that the United States spends 40 percent more on health care coverage than any nation with universal care.

Ethical Concerns

• While a number of proponents of universal care do so from the point of view of cost and efficiency, others do so from a simple ethical point of view. These proponents of universal care consider it unethical that health care is subordinated to private profit, meaning that profit comes before need when determining who gets health care.