If you are outraged because you believe that the bailout of the auto industry is an economic aberration, sit down and take a big breath – because pretty soon we will be faced with a much bigger problem than the auto industry bailout: medicare.
Of course, there are many differences between the two sectors. The most important is that the first is a private enterprise related to a relatively small group of citizens, while the second is a public service for everybody.
Another difference, however, is that while the auto bailout supposedly is a one-time shot, the bailout needed for medicare is a black hole into which billions of dollars will have to be coughed up every year.
The debate about medicare has always thrived, and in the last 10 years it has almost monopolized the attention of politicians, governments and experts. Unfortunately, the research, debates and disputes have always hinged around the notion that the service is needed. Of course it is, and nobody disputes it. We don’t need costly experts or outraged politicians to tell us that we need medicare and we need it for everybody. What they have not told us is how to pay for it.
Furthermore, they have never told us how much money you and I already pay for the needed service, nor do they tell us how they spend our money.
So, let’s look at some numbers.
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But I thought medicare was free? Did someone change the rules??