Bart119 comments on Near Concerns About Life Extension - Less Wrong

-9 Post author: Bart119 08 June 2012 07:12PM

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Comment author: Bart119 09 June 2012 01:35:41AM 0 points [-]

I'm sympathetic to the idea that basic, proven health care (80% of the benefit for 20% of the cost) should be free to all, and that more expensive, less effective health care should be available to people rich enough to buy it. But this is highly problematic politically. If your society supports "(top of the line) health care is a right, not a privilege", then standard models of resource allocation are problematic. Political leaders might give in to the demands, at the cost of health care spending rising to (say) 50% of GDP. We could lose our economic competitiveness in a catastrophic way.

Comment author: shminux 09 June 2012 03:13:22AM 0 points [-]

This is an ongoing discussion in every Western country, actually. Privileges tend to become rights when the society can afford giving them to everyone.