Infant Mortality and Universal Healthcare

Infant Mortality and Universal Healthcare

In the continued fight between free market healthcare and universal healthcare, the issue of infant mortality is used as a talking point. The United States has the most advanced medical treatment systems in the world today, but it doesn't always seem fair that some people have access to the best care and others don't. The trade off for our type of system is that we can continually develop the most cutting edge treatments but they will remain unreasonably expensive until they become more common. The one area we don't lead the world in is infant mortality, and the supporters of universal healthcare point to this as a major reason we should give up our free market principles. So what really causes infant mortality, and is it a good enough reason to make the switch?

The number one cause of infant mortality is congenital defects; meaning some type of deformation of the baby while still in the womb. There are several factors involved with this problem that need some extra explanation. First, abortion is not as accepted in this country as it is in many other industrialized countries around the world; so in other countries the mother would be more inclined to abort the baby, making it not count toward the infant mortality rate. Second; each individual race has a different rate of congenital defects and they are easier handled when everyone has the same problems, but we in the United States are a melting pot of every race and every problem. Third is prenatal care and this is the only point that has anything to do with our type of healthcare system; because people who have to pay for healthcare are less inclined to go, even if they have insurance. The trade off in countries with universal healthcare is that everyone goes to the doctor too often because it's free; this eventually overwhelms the system and forces the government to ration care or go bankrupt.

Low birth weight is the second leading cause of infant mortality and again, this requires some explaining about the difference in the United States. Low birth weight is caused by a number of different lifestyle choices, like diet and smoking. In most other nations their government has become a nanny state, telling its people what they can eat and drink in an effort to make the population healthier. Here in the United States we don't believe that the government exists to take care of us, but to protect us from foreign invaders; and any effort by the government to regulate our diets is seen as an infringement on our right to self determinism. The biggest problem with universal healthcare from our standpoint is that it can't exist without the government at least partially regulating our health for the good of the whole.

Education on the pregnancy cycle and planned parenthood could greatly reduce the infant mortality rate, but these things have very little to do with the healthcare system. Not all pregnancies can be planned and the ones that aren't can go several months before the mother realizes that she needs to change her lifestyle for the baby. Education about the pregnancy is available to anyone who wants it on the internet and at the doctor's office, but you can't force anyone to go get it. It is true that the poorer portion of the population has less access to healthcare in this country, but there are alternatives to traditional insurance if they are willing to look. As a nation, we could make more of an effort to disseminate information about a healthy pregnancy but we don't have to change our healthcare system to do it.

The choice between universal healthcare and free market healthcare is a choice between universal coverage that sacrifices quality and freedom; or a system that doesn't evenly cover everyone. Infant mortality is a problem here, but we are also much more likely to survive cancer than anywhere else on Earth. Traditional insurance isn't the only choice in this country though; Ameriplanusa and other companies do offer a discount fee for service plan that is considerably less expensive on a monthly basis. Another option is a catastrophic plan that will cover giant expenses, but not the little ones like regular doctor visits. There is no way to make the system fair from everyone's stand point; but given the choice, most Americans will choose personal freedom over government intervention.

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