The US government ought to guarantee universal healthcare for its citizens.

Resolved: The United States ought to guarantee universal health care for its citizens. I affirm (agree). I value morality and my standard is giving the most benefits possible to citizens. The following definition is provided for clarification in the round. ought: Used to indicate obligation or duty Justifications: We analyze the implications of this resolution through morality. It is our duty as a society in this situation to save as much money as possible, thus helping the citizens of the US, and save as many lives as possible, both of which can be achieved through extending universal healthcare to all citizens of the US. My standard holds true because one of the US government"s main purposes is to give the most possible benefits, social, economic, and otherwise, to its citizens. Universal healthcare does this. Burdens: The Aff must prove that if the US were to guarantee universal health care for its citizens, improvements to the healthcare system would occur as a result. The Neg must prove that if the US were to guarantee universal health care for its citizens, improvements to the nation would not occur as a result, but instead negative effects would follow. Contention 1: Universal healthcare in the US would lower mortality rates, since private insurance somewhat raises mortality rates. a. Thornton, Ph.D in Economics says: quote "results indicate a negative relationship between private insurance and mortality, thus suggest that extending insurance to the uninsured population would result in an improvement in population health outcomes. The estimate of the marginal effect of insurance coverage indicates that a 10% increase in the population-insured rate of a state reduces mortality by 1.69-1.92%. b. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, "The United States has the highest per capita health expenditures of any country in the OECD [Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development]. The U.S. spends 16 percent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on healthcare compared to 8 percent for the United Kingdom and Japan, and 10 percent for Germany and Canada. Yet all the other countries mentioned have a higher life expectancy at birth and lower infant mortality rate than the U.S." endquote. Through universal healthcare, we can lower these mortality rates. This argument achieves my value because human lives are saved when mortality rates are reduced, so it it also links to my standard because it shows how guaranteeing health care for all citizens reduces mortality. Contention 2: Universal healthcare will benefit the US, economically. (Warrant from Wash. Post by Ezra Klein) a. The Congressional Budget Office found that universal healthcare will reduce the deficit by $1.2 trillion. J. Similarly, Dr. Mohit says about universal healthcare being implemented quote, "our country would save a minimum of $950 billion per year. This is equivalent to one third of our national budget." endquote. One way that universal healthcare will save money is preventative care will be practiced, so people can get care when their health problems are first starting, not when they are deep into a sickness. b. The Council of Economic Advisers (to the White House) or (CEA) finds that quote, "Perhaps the most visible sign of the need for health care reform is the 46 million Americans currently without health insurance. C. CEA projections suggest that this number will rise to about 72 million in 2040 in the absence of reform. A key factor driving this trend is the tendency of small firms not to provide coverage due to the rising cost of health care." endquote. It also finds that quote, "[Universal healthcare] would increase the economic well-being of the uninsured by substantially more than the costs of insuring them. A comparison of the total benefits of coverage to the uninsured, including such benefits as longer life expectancy and reduced financial risk, and the total costs of insuring them (including both the public and private costs), suggests net gains in economic well-being of about two-thirds of a percent of GDP per year. It would likely increase labor supply. Increased insurance coverage and, hence, improved health care, is likely to increase labor supply by reducing disability and absenteeism in the workplace. This increase in labor supply would tend to increase GDP and reduce the budget deficit. The CEA report makes clear that the total benefits of health care reform could be very large." endquote. This achieves my value premise because it is moral for the American people and the economy to prosper, and so they are given many benefits. Contention 3: Universal healthcare will yield many benefits to the US. Globality Health finds that quote, "Evidence suggests the implementation of a universal health care system benefits a country"s economy. Aside from a healthier workforce and lower mortality rates, universal health coverage (UHC) can boost the economy in more general ways. A study, carried out by the consultancy firm KPMG, looks at the effects of UHC on the economy of South Africa. The results show the economic benefits of introducing UHC in 2011 have so far outweighed the costs associated with introducing the system and funding it with increased taxes. The study from KPMG shows the expenditure of R13 billion this year on healthcare could create an additional R650 million in economic activity nationally. This positive impact is likely to stem from increased productivity from a healthier workforce and increased life expectancy. It has been shown, for countries which have implemented national health insurance scheme or UHC, benefits come from a healthier population. Increasing the average life expectancy by one year could potentially increase the country"s GDP per capita by 4 percent. As UHC leads to improved health among workers and a decrease in time off due to illness, it will impact on productivity levels. Several international studies have estimated an increase in labour productivity between 20 and 45 percent in the medium to long-term." This achieves my value premise because if universal healthcare is implemented, it would affect our country positively, which would be moral, and many benefits would given to citizens. Because of all these reasons, universal healthcare is desirable for the US.