Socialized Health Care in the USA

[kandrathe]

In those apocalyptic CBO graphs showing the US drowning in debt by 2050, the big player is health care.

Yes, another issue. We've made a commitment to the over 65 crowd that we'll have trouble honoring without driving the expense to debt, further burdening future generations who also need to pay for their own health care.

My grandfather is a classic example. In his early career he was a farmer, until he graduated from the police academy. He joined the Minneapolis police force when in his early 20's, and served for 20 years. Then once his children left home, he moved back out to the small town where he grew up and became the town's sheriff and retired at 55 (which was the age then) with a pension, sizable savings, and owned a rural home here in Minnesota, and a cottage in Florida where he and my grandmother would spend the winters. He figured that he would live like most people until he was 60 something. But, usher in modern medicine. He lived to 103, with a high quality of life until he was into his late 90's. But, he worked and paid into the system (at much lower rates and value of a dollar) for 30 years, and he collected benefits (at an inflated price) from his pension and the government for about 50 years. My grandma, then in her 90's, felt bad when they ran out of money and told me many times that they never thought they would live so long.