Opinion: Anything but this

Elliot Golan / Roundup

The healthcare system in this country is nothing short of pathetic.

Healthcare overhaul is essential. The term “public option” has been thrown around a lot in the past few months.

President Barack Obama wants to install a public option to the overhaul of the healthcare system. His goal is to create competition between a government-run insurance program and private insurers. Makes sense.

If private insurance companies have to bid against another insurer, the beneficiary is the consumer.

That’s precisely what we need. We need more affordable and accessible insurance.

Some of the changes that young adults could gain most from the coming overhaul, reported by the Los Angeles Times, would include:

• A congressional provision that would allow young people to stay on their parents’ insurance plans until the age of 26.

• The expansion of Medicaid to include more low-income workers.

• The possible inclusion of young people in the Medicare program, which currently serves only the elderly.

After all, Americans between the ages of 18 to 29 are the most uninsured age group in the country, according to a press release from Rock the Vote.

Furthermore, the New York Times recently reported the same age group to be the least employed group in the country. Coincidence?

In an article in the Los Angeles Times, Michael Tanner, a senior fellow at the Cato institute, a libertarian think tank, says, “Young people are probably one of the groups that’s going to come out the worst in this.”

In the same article the opposing view was shown. Genevieve Kenney, a health economist at the Urban institute, a nonpartisan Washington think tank, says, “I think many more uninsured young adults stand to gain from healthcare reform than stand to lose.”

Healthcare overhaul is being worked on through seemingly endless heated debate. We know that full well. Debate has yet to yield results. As every day of deliberation passes, the uninsured of our country continue to suffer.

The public option is the best way for the largest amount of uninsured Americans to receive insurance. After all, this is a numbers game.