# Pros and cons to universal health care

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pros-and-cons-to-universal-health-care/634194>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [September 9, 2012, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pros-and-cons-to-universal-health-care/634194 "2012-09-09T14:05:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 4

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\
**Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pros-and-cons-to-universal-health-care/634194/61 "2012-09-12T00:28:58Z")

</div>

> [@WhyNot](#):
>
> Weeeeeeellll…that’s actually something that’s beginning to be pretty hotly debated. It may turn out that “preventing disease” is more expensive, keeping them alive to require expensive custodial care due to Alzeheimer’s, strokes or end stage renal disease, rather than letting people die younger and faster of heart attacks and diabetes.
> 
> It’s not being debated very _loudly_, because it leads to death panel accusations, of course.

I bet health cares costs are very low in the **Logan’s Run** universe.  
Still, to make a good calculation you need to balance the benefit society gets from people not dying early. Think or Schubert and Mozart. What would be a good start would be to help each person make end of life decisions early and in a clear way. Paying for exactly that was what prompted Palin’s death panel screed. I know a bunch of old people who really don’t want to have a lot of money and effort spent to keep them alive in these cases.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pros-and-cons-to-universal-health-care/634194.md?page=3)