One thing I have a hard time understanding about the aversion the Republican party has to universal health care is this: Why in the world has the burden of providing health care for individuals fallen on private industry? For a party that runs on the ideal that businesses should be allowed to run unrestricted and for free enterprise, wouldn't that burden being lifted off of them be a huge shot in the arm for our economy?

Let's face it, the average American simply can't afford to provide health care to themselves anymore. I'm financially secure enough with my wife and I both working, that we could probably find some very marginal plan to be able to get by with but it would be nowhere near as comprehensive as the one my company provides. Recently our company was forced into a worse plan with much higher prescription drug prices and major copays on stuff like MRI's because the costs rose so much.

I don't want total healthcare available to all citizens. What I want instead is for just the basics to be covered by the government such as emergency care and basic prescription availability. Then, a family such as mine could supplement that coverage with more comprehensive stuff at greatly reduced prices. Nowhere in that picture would my company or any other need to feel compelled to fill in those blanks.

Doctors and hospitals are going to take care of sick Americans whether they have coverage or not so we all end up paying in the end. Doesn't it make sense to have accounting for those costs up front and regulated than get blindsided by it everytime the employment figures change?