Fine. Then figure out a way to get those who can't afford it health insurance. Subsidies to buy insurance on the market. Tax breaks for insurance companies who offer special deals to the poor. There are probably lots of things that might work. Don't come in and destroy a system that's working just fine for most of us.

Why do you think people like Ted Kennedy and other socialists are violently opposed to means-testing their social programs? If the real concern was the poor, means-testing wouldn't be an issue. However, if the real concern is extending government control over the maximum number of citizens, that would be different. Do you really think the leftists who are pushing the destruction of private medicine are kidding anyone?