HMOs and other private health insurance firms need to get their hands out of our pockets! The United States spends more on health care than any other nation in the world, but the majority of its people are not getting their money's worth. A poorly regulated, corporate-dominated health care system eliminates choice, erodes care, and inflates administrative costs while boosting profits and CEO compensation. For example, our nation spends 24 cents of every health-care dollar on administrative costs, while Canada - which provides high quality health care to all of its citizens through a single-payer, government-insured system - spends only 11 cents per dollar on such costs.
The wealthiest nation in the world clearly ought to be able to deliver quality health care to all its citizens, no less than Canada and other industrialized nations. Health care is a critical social good that demands that collective interests prevail over private gain. It should be viewed as a right, not a privilege!
In Illinois, we can promote this system of health care by amending the Illinois Constitution. The late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin advocated health care for all and supporting the Bernardin Amendment is a step toward attaining these goals. The Bernardin Amendment would amend the Illinois Constitution by adding the following provision: "Health care is an essential safeguard of human life and dignity, and there is an obligation for the State of Illinois to ensure that every resident is able to realize this fundamental right. On or before [date], the General Assembly by law shall enact a plan for universal health coverage that permits everyone in Illinois to obtain decent health care on a regular basis."
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