I think that universal healthcare sounds all warm and fuzzy and lets treat everyone equal and whatever, but seriously lets think about it for a minute.

I can empathize with you on the specialist thing. I had to see a retinal specialist last year once a month for 6 months. The receptionist warned us not to bother coming early bc there would be a wait. The wait every month no fail was AT LEAST 3 hours even with an appointment scheduled. Now that was a retinal specialist. Think about how many poor people are plagued with diabetes and are suffering retinal damage because 1. they cannot or/ do not want to care for their diabetes or 2. are not able to get medical attention. If all those people were suddenly blessed with universal health care that wait would be off the friggin chart. And thats just for diabetic retinopathy. Now imagine cardiovascular disease, resiratory and, mental diseases; all of these diseases are more prevalent in low income populations aka those that are most likely to not have health care coverage.

Where are we going to get the doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, cardiologists, rheumatologists, CNA's, PCA's, and the like, not to mention room in the wards and equipment to care for there patients? I have been in the hospitals for more than 2 years now and even with that little experience I can say that hospitals, although touted as near rackets by most, are strapped for staff and properly functioning equipment. An average nursing assignment is determined by most facilities to be at 4-5 to ensure safe care for all patients. In reality nurses are assigned upwards of 6. In nursing homes and rehab settings it can be upwards of 16 (where I work). The most I have seen is 22. This means less care for ALL of the patients involved not just the poor, and is frankly dangerous to everyone involved.

As a health care provider it breaks my heart to see people suffering for financial or lack of insurance or whatever, but handing it to everyone in a country this size with a medical field as lacking as ours is is totally unrealistic. First fix the health care system as a whole THEN invite everyone.

I also advocate for plans like MassHealth. So many people knock it but my family was on it for 1 year and it was not bad. I forget the statistic but there is a huge percent of people who are elligible for it that do not utilize it.