The case for being uninsured.

PositionObamaCare

"Republicans say they are going to 'replace' ObamaCare, but they will come up with something very similar and at least as bad if they start with the same misguided objective: 'universal coverage.' There are necessities of life, but insurance is not one of them," says Jane M. Orient, executive director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, Tucson, Ariz.

"Just what good is that little card in your wallet? Once it has expired, it is good for absolutely nothing, even if you have paid $100,000 or more for it over a period of years.

"It might be a ticket to get you into certain medical facilities but, in these days of narrow networks, it will keep you out of others. It by no means guarantees that the facility will provide you with the care you need or want---or even that you won't get an outrageous bill, especially before you meet the deductible.

"It will guarantee that you will be paying for a lot of things you don't need or want. Some will be other people's medical care, or anti-tobacco lectures, or alcohol rehab (even if you are a teetotaler). You'll pay for some things just because they are 'quality' metrics--hospice evaluation is a newly proposed one--and you will definitely pay for administrators, managers, monitors, clerks, claims processors, and reprocessors, etc., all of whom get their paycheck or their pension even if your doctor doesn't."

"Many people," Orient adds, "choose to be uninsured, even if they are a good risk and can afford insurance, and more end up uninsured because they are a bad risk or can't afford it, or simply choose to use their money for something else. In 1940, less than 10% of the population had health insurance. You could go your whole life, and never miss that insurance card."

However, "most people, of course, do need medical care at some point. If they are uninsured, they can go to the doctor and whip out their checkbook, just like your mother or grandmother did, and just like you probably do at...

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