Jeffrey Crate A7
Obamacare
5/13/14

In the United States, Health care is handled in a quite different fashion than our other developed countries in Europe. In Europe there is universal health care or a health care that provides for everyone. Universal health care provided by the country means the countries government pools money together that goes towards everyone in that nations health coverage. However the health policy that’s currently enacted in our country is the Affordable Care Act. This act basically tells everybody that they need health insurance and you must pay for it and that insurance companies can’t be biased and other amenities. It is set up so people are able to pay the insurance companies and helps everyone get covered who wasn’t previously covered. The health care systems are implemented in majority developed countries as I stated earlier, however both have pros and cons or tradeoffs. Europe’s large pool is designed that every person gets a amount of money to help out anyone who needs it. However money is distributed to people based on how they justify themselves. Money is rearranged so the ones in most need get more attention. Like a kid with kidney cancer will get more money for his treatment than an alcoholic who abused his kidney in the first place. This is because the kid will have more of an opportunity with his kidney than an abuser who will more than likely ruin his next kidney. The con of this is on some of the tougher cases, you’re fate is completely decided by another person balancing statistics, which is quite unnerving. The pros and cons (tradeoffs) of the Affordable Care Act are quite substantially more distinguishable. Everybody is covered just like Europe’s Act, but you are forced by your government whether you think insurance is right for you or not, or whether you are able to pay for it or not. It is good to be insured so medical bills won’t pile on debt onto you, but being forced into debt at the beginning by not being able to pay for your health care is also a downfall. As I do feel that insurance is a must in the modern world, I don’t feel like it should be pushed onto you if you can’t afford it. Previous to the Affordable Health Care Act was health care was optional, but encouraged. They wanted you to have it but it wasn’t\ enforced onto you as it is now with the Affordable Care Act. Funding for the Affordable Health Care Act is provided by tax payers like you! And is also portioned off by the people who pay for health care. The pros and cons (tradeoffs), On the pro side of a universal care act is that you don’t have to pay for it, it’s provided for everyone and anyone and everyone is covered. The con is your life is at the stake of the governments jurisdiction. A pro of the Affordable Care act is that you can’t be turned down because of any preexisting ailments or conditions and the Con