🔗 Share this article As a Hardcore Capitalist, Yet Universal Medicare Represents the Top Hope for American Health System Deductibles. Preferred providers. Non-preferred providers. Concierge medical services. Out-of-pocket expenses. Fixed payment. Co-insurance. Insurance consultants. Insurance brokers. Medical advisors. ACA. HMO. PPO. EPO. Point of Service. High Deductible Health Plan. Health Savings Account. FSA. Health Reimbursement Arrangement. EOB. COBRA. Small Business Health Options Program. Single coverage. Family coverage. Premium tax credits. Confused? You should be. Who understands all this stuff? Certainly not the average entrepreneur. Nor the typical employee. Selecting the appropriate healthcare insurance for companies – or for households – appears to require it requires a PhD in medical insurance. Our Healthcare System Isn't Just Complicated, It Is Costly Based on recent research, the average family pays $27,000 annually for their health insurance (up 6% compared to last year). Typical employer health insurance cost is projected to surpass $seventeen thousand for each worker in 2026, a 9.5% jump compared to 2025. Now the government has ceased functioning due to partisan disputes over tax credits which analysts predict could cause premium increases up to 100% for numerous US citizens. When Will We Truly Examine Universal Healthcare? How soon might we genuinely evaluate a national health insurance program in the United States? I have to believe we're approaching that point because this can't continue. I'm not proposing national healthcare. I'm advocating that our already existing Medicare program – an established insurance framework – merely extend to cover everyone. The existing system remains intact. How medical professionals get paid would change. Believe me, they will adjust. The Way National Health Insurance Could Function Universal healthcare coverage would need contributions from workers and companies. In comparable systems, an employee making moderate income must contribute about 5.3% toward medical coverage. Their employer pays about thirteen point seventy-five percent. Does this seem like a lot? Not if you compare that with what average American pays. I know dozens of clients that are easily contributing anywhere from eight to fifteen percent of their employee wages to their healthcare costs. And keep in mind that in inclusive programs, those payments include retirement benefits, illness coverage, parental benefits and unemployment benefits along with funding healthcare facilities. When you add these expenses versus what we pay for our retirement plans, unemployment insurance and vacation benefits, the gap narrows. Implementation in the US In the US, universal healthcare funding would increase existing Medicare taxes, a system that is already in place. It ought to be means-based – wealthier individuals would pay more than those earning less. This includes both worker and company payments. And, like many federal defense, technology, welfare services and transportation services, the system could be managed to third-party administrators instead of federal agencies. Benefits for Small Businesses A national health insurance program would be a huge benefit for small businesses such as my company. It would place small companies in equal competition with our larger competitors who can afford better plans. It would render administration much easier (automatic payroll withholding remitted like social security and Medicare taxes, instead of individual transactions to benefit firms and coverage administrators). It would make simpler for us to budget annual expenditures, instead of going through the complicated (and fruitless) theater of bargaining with major insurers required annually every year. Because it's simplified, there would exist a better understanding of coverage by our employees – as opposed to existing arrangements which require them to decipher the complications of current options. And there would certainly be reduced responsibility for companies as we no longer would be privy to our employees' health histories for weighing risks and different options. Capitalist Perspective I'm as capitalist as they get. However I recognize that public institutions has a significant role in our lives, including national security to supporting needed infrastructure. Providing healthcare for everyone via universal healthcare enhances economic foundations. It represents superior, easier system for entrepreneurs that employ more than half of American employees and fund half of our GDP. It enables for workers to enjoy better health, come to work more often and increase productivity. Addressing Concerns Exist a million considerations I'm not addressing? Of course there are. Given all the healthcare cost increases experienced in recent years, it's evident that current healthcare legislation isn't functioning effectively. I understand that America isn't a compact European nation where major reforms are easier to implement. But expanding Medicare for all, despite increased taxation required, would still be a better and more affordable strategy both for managing medical expenses but providing access for all citizens. Time for Honest Assessment We as Americans, must tone down our own arrogance. Our healthcare system isn't so great. We rank significantly behind numerous nations in healthcare quality in the world, according to major studies. Maybe one bright spot amid present circumstances is that we take serious examination at ourselves and agree that major reforms are necessary.