Conservative Arguments FOR Healthcare Reform

Here are conservative argument for health care reform that I think any fair-minded person can agree with regardless of your political affiliation or beliefs.

By passing comprehensive health care reform we have the opportunity for the federal government to truly affect the general welfare in a positive way for all Americans as guaranteed in the United States Constitution. How? It's simple. A healthy nation is a productive nation. Think of all the man-hours being lost today due to workers being ill, in pain, or disabled. If we were all just a little more healthy, a LOT more would get done and therefore, more money would be made and we would ALL prosper.

Also, healthier citizens are happier and that means less crime and violence as well as less division and hate. It would mean less domestic violence and less child abuse. More jobs and better salaries means less burglary and theft, less homeless, less hungry and less poverty. And, of course, it would result in more business too because happier people have a tendency to do more and spend more money. This stuff is just common sense, but it rarely is brought up in the debate for health care reform. Why are you opposing it again?

Let's say you just care about more jobs and economic growth. Great! The 'public option' being proposed by Democrats will give a competitor to the insurance industry to bring costs down. The insurance that businesses provide to their employees will be cheaper and some will even take the public option. That means more small business jobs and more profit for small businesses. The CBO reports that, despite claims by HCR opponents, private insurance companies will actually gain MORE customers due to lower costs.

Want more business arguments FOR health care reform? If 47 million people suddenly have health insurance, there is sure to be an increase in demand for medical services and pharmaceuticals, so expect the stocks for these providers to do extremely well. Those businesses will need to hire more people to meet this demand, therefore more jobs created due to health care reform. Salaries will also be positively affected. The public option is good business, good for jobs and good politics!

But what about the conservative principle of fiscal responsibility, you might ask? The answer is simple: We can't afford to keep things the way they are. Our broken health care system represents 16% of our Gross Domestic Product. Health care costs are leading individuals to bankruptcy at an alarming rate. If nothing is done, it will only get worse. That means less income in the form of taxes for all levels of government and therefore a loss of public services you've taken for granted your entire life. Without economic growth, the only way to go is down. A public option would clearly be good for business, good for American's health, productivity and overall prosperity.


We are still feeling the negative effects from eight long years of a conservative administration and 'representatives' who completely abandoned this supposed principle of fiscal responsibility by turning a surplus into record deficits. When a Republican president wanted to drop bombs, they never questioned the cost, but if Democrats want to reform a broken health care system which will directly help American citizens by protecting our life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, suddenly we can't afford it?

Yes, health care reform directly affects all three of these inalienable rights set by our founders in the Declaration of Independence. The "Life" part is obvious. Healthcare is essential for life. "Liberty" involves how insurance companies currently profit by denying health care benefits as well as the lack of real competition in the industry. Currently most people get insurance from their employer. When costs come down, you can choose between companies and coverages because they will be more affordable. It is also an injustice infringing on your liberty that an insurance company decides what medical treatment you get and not a doctor. At least we can vote for whoever represents us in government. That is the power of our great democracy. Your "Pursuit of Happiness" is being infringed on when insurance companies take advantage of you, for example, by denying coverage based on a pre-existing condition or refusing to pay for your benefits solely for their own profit and greed. Obviously, healthiness contributes to happiness and lower costs will reduce financial hardships which are a detriment to an individual's well being. With all three of these inalienable rights currently in jeopardy by a broken health care system, I am shocked that more true conservatives don't come out in support of health care reform.

10 More Conservative Arguments FOR Healthcare Reform

1. Illegal immigrants are explicitly not covered.

2. Legislation does not subsidize abortion.

3. Insurers that deny lifesaving treatment, or ignore Living Wills can no longer keep these practices secret.

4. The bill promotes entrepreneurship by letting people keep their healthcare when they quit their job and start a business.

5. More Choice = More Freedom. The public option is OPTIONAL. It's another choice designed to give much-needed competition to an out-of-control insurance industry that is making record profits by denying health care benefits.

6. Emergency room care for the uninsured is guaranteed at public expense so it makes sense to bring these people into the insurance system, and to offer less expensive, long-term preventive healthcare. This will reduce costs for everybody.

7. Accountability for costs, quality, and value of providers, suppliers, and administrators is public.

8. Coverage does not discriminate by type of illness or ability to pay.

9. Both the Preamble and Article 1 Section 8 of our US Constitution guarantee that the government will promote and provide for our defense AND general welfare. If you believe that the federal government should provide a military for defense, then you should also support the idea of providing health care for all US citizens.

(BTW universal health care would require a 'single-payer' system and not the 'public option' being proposed by Obama and Democrats in congress. Liberals are compromising because a solution to this problem is THAT important.)

10.  A Republican party that often cites their own moral values as an advantage should put compassionate common sense in front of ideology and partisanship.


There sure does seem to be a lot of good conservative arguments FOR health care reform. Wonder why you never hear Republicans or right-wingers talking about these positives? Unfortunately, that's because it seems to be all politics and no common sense with so-called 'conservatives' these days.