The U.S. ought to guarantee Universal Healthcare to its citizenry

The burden of the Pro is to show that some form of UHC is, on principle, should be guaranteed to the citizens of the United States. The Pro does not have to pick a specific type of UHC to support, nor does it need to offer a policy to implement it. Merely, the debate is about whether, on a moral/principle level, UHC should be granted. The Con should show that, on principle, UHC ought not be guaranteed. My argument: Essentially, we must be free from concerns over our survival in order to pursue those goals, desires we need in order to live fulfilling and happy lives. If we were starving or unsafe, those factors would unduly preoccupy our lives and threaten our independence. Thus, it is my Contention that universal healthcare is necessary to achieve true autonomy, because to be able to e self-actualize we must sate our basic needs. Sub-point A: Without universal healthcare, millions are endangered. According to Prof. Alan Derickson, "the ranks of the uninsured swelled from 33 million in 1983, a year of severe recession, to 37 million in 1986, a year of buoyant recovery, underscoring"the degree to which this problem afflicted the employed as well as the unemployed"" Currently, about 50 million go without healthcare. Derickson goes on to point out that millions of Americans are jeopardized by uninsurance. "The real meaning of health insecurity is not the fears stirred by the lack of a reassuring plastic card in one"s wallet"lack of insurance means otherwise preventable death, disability, suffering, and loss. People without health insurance receive less care and, as a result, suffer higher rates of morbidity and mortality"about fifty Americans die every day from illness or injury because they have no insurance. Beneath the policy jargon and rhetoric"is a tragedy of human sacrifice." According to Prof. Jennifer Prah, "Lack of health care access increases risk exposure; failing to meet health needs when they occur can expose individuals to even greater risk of illness or injury later on. Illness itself brings vulnerabilities: a potential further decline in health." Prof. Leonard Fleck, agrees, noting: "The Institute of Medicine reports that about 20,000"uninsured Americans die each year for reasons directly connected to their lack of insurance"They die prematurely. How can a society as wealthy as our own that wishes to think of itself as "just and caring" tolerate that unnecessary loss of life?" This enormous and wanton loss of life reinforces the concept that healthcare is necessary to simply survive, let alone be autonomous agents. As I stated earlier: to be able to pursue self-actualization we must have our basic needs met. Without universal healthcare, we cannot act autonomously, because needs go unmet. Sub-point B: Universal healthcare is necessary for physiological and security needs. According to Dr. Jeffrey Lobosky, "The huge population of uninsured"Americans have been priced out of the American health care system"" He observes that the uninsured pay most of these usurious expenses out of pocket, leading them into vast debt. This massive debt, notes Prof. Stephanie Woolhandler, is the cause of 50% of bankruptcies in the U.S. The sheer cost of healthcare presents a problem, considering that a family might have to choose between eating and paying a medical bill, preventing them from acquiring physiological needs. Additionally, community security is endangered by a lack of healthcare. According to Professors Chua Kao-Ping and Flavio Casoy, "Communities with high rates of uninsurance have less effective control of communicable disease" jeopardizing everyone"s health and that ""high rates of uninsurance and"uncompensated care costs weaken a community"s health infrastructure. Since healthcare is an important part of a community"s economic base, communities suffer economically." According to Dr. Kenneth Thorpe, universal healthcare could actually save between 320 billion and 1.1 trillion dollars over ten years alone. Prof. Dale Murray argues that universal healthcare would grant, "freedom from financial and care-giving burdens placed"by the uninsured, lower absenteeism, and more reliable productivity from a workforce that can access basic health services." Thus, a community"s stability and security are risked without healthcare and, conversely, are helped by it. Sub-point C: Universal healthcare is necessary for belongingness needs and esteem needs. Prof. Norman Daniels notes that the sick tend to be ostracized from society and that universal healthcare would help remedy this. He posits: "by keeping people close to normal functioning, healthcare preserves for people the ability to participate in the political, social, and economic life of their society. It sustains them as fully participating citizens"in all spheres of social life." Thus universal healthcare promotes belongingness, as it does esteem. According to Kao-ping and Casoy: "The suffering caused by uninsurance goes far beyond the purely physical suffering experienced by uninsured individuals. Emotionally, uninsurance contributes to anxiety, familial stress, depression, and fear. Financially, medical costs are a major cause of personal bankruptcy." Anxiety, familial stress, and depression, all serve to undermine esteem, observes the American Psychiatric Association. Without our basic needs met, it cannot be said that we are fully autonomous beings. Without universal healthcare we"ll forever be dependent, ill, and unable to pursue our own dreams. Thus, to have true autonomy, I urge an affirmative ballot.