US Health Care is Worthless

As for (1), since my opponent agreed to the health care system being a disgrace I do not have to prove anything on that behalf; furthermore, (2) needs to be addressed. Contention1: US Health Care is worthless My opponent states that "worthless" means to be worth nothing, zero, zilch; My opponent also believes that the US health care system is not fully worthless; however, the US health care system costs too much to run since it is not operated correctly. Evidence for this: "In 2008, the U. S. spent more than $2 trillion on health care"nearly 17 percent of our economy. Meanwhile, 46 million people are uninsured. " (. http://www.rwjf.org...) This has obviously contributed to the economic downfall that we are currently in. The US Health Care is worse than just being "worthless". Instead of just being worth "nothing, zero, zilch", it is actually in the negative. Contention 2: Medicare is neither perfect, nor decent Well obviously the programs are not perfect, nothing is perfect. Evidence includes: 1. ) The Medicare Part D plan will hand over $800 billion of our tax dollars to the drug and health insurance industry. According to the Congressional Budget Office, for the ten-year period, 2006 through 2016, the projected spending is $848 billion. "The Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2008 to 2017," Congressional Budget Office, January 2007. . http://www.cbo.gov... 2. ) The elderly could end up paying more for their prescription drugs than they did before under Part D - and a majority of senior citizens could still pay over $2000 a year. "For all patients, Medicare covers 75 percent of the first $2,250 worth of drugs. But after that, coverage drops to zero - and doesn't resume until the patient hits $5,100 in expenses. Then Medicare kicks in again, paying 95 percent of costs. But it's this gap - of almost $3,000 - that many sick and disabled seniors call unaffordable. " Medicare's 'Donut Hole,' CBS News, July 26, 2006. . http://www.cbsnews.com... "Nearly 7 million seniors and individuals with disabilities who purchased stand-alone prescription drug coverage are now at risk of falling into the 'doughnut hole. ' According to a report released today by Senior Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committeeï¿½ nearly 88 percent of new drug plan enrollees, roughly 7 million individuals, are at risk of losing coverage for their medications while they continue to pay monthly premiums to their insurers. The report further details how few individuals have enrolled in plans without doughnut holes, presumably because of the prohibitive cost of such plans. " "88% Of New Medicare Drug Program Enrollees At Risk Of Falling Into The 'Doughnut Hole,'" Joint News Release From Representative Charles B. Rangel, Ranking Democrat, Committee On Ways And Means, Representative Pete Stark, Ranking Democrat, Subcommittee On Health, Committee On Ways And Means, Representative Sander M. Levin, Ranking Democrat, Subcommittee On Social Security, Committee On Ways And Means, September 21, 2006. . http://www.house.gov... _of_new_medicare_drug_program_enrollees_at_risk_of_falling _into_the_doughnut_hole. html "Over the past year, Part D drug prices have increased several times faster than the rate of inflation. Families USA analyzed the prices for 15 of the drugs most frequently prescribed to seniors. We examined prices for each of the plans offered by the largest Part D insurers, which together cover about two-thirds of all Part D beneficiaries. We then compared the lowest available Part D price for each drug in April 2006 with the lowest available price for the same drug in April 2007. The lowest price for every one of the top 15 drugs prescribed to seniors increased, and the median increase was 9.2 percent. " Medicare Part D Prices Are Climbing Quickly, FamiliesUSA, April 2007. . http://www.familiesusa.org... And this is only for the Medicare Part D. .. .pretty soon everything becomes too expensive, such as medicines and doctor care, which will result in no health care for anyone, since no one will be able to afford it. Contention 3: Other countries have better Health Care We need to be like England, where drugs are only $10! (For much of 2006, the standard charge for a prescription was ï¿½6.65. "The cost of an NHS prescription in England is to rise by 15p to ï¿½6.65 from the start of April. " "Prescription charge to rise 15p," BBC News, March 13 2006. ) In the U. S. , health care costs run nearly $7,000 per person. But in Cuba, they spend around $251 per person. Like Canadians and Brits, the French live longer than we do. The 2006 United Nations Human Development Report's human development index states the life expectancy in the United States is 77.5, the United Kingdom is 78.5, France is 79.6, and Canada is 80.2. Human Development Report 2006, United Nations Development Programme, 2006 at 283. . http://hdr.undp.org.... Overall the US Health Care is a disgrace and is worse than worthless. Thanks for the argument and thanks to the people voting! Good Luck!