On Dec. 18, a federal appeals court struck down an integral part of the Affordable Care Act that imposes a penalty on an individual if they are not covered by health insurance. The individual mandate was a contentious issue during the debate when the Affordable Care Act was first passed in 2010. Critics said it amounted to a hidden tax in the bill, while others said that it was unconstitutional and wrong to force someone to purchase health care.
During an interview with Boston Public Radio on Monday, medical ethicist Art Caplan said that centering the health care debate around insurance coverage is not completely apt. To Caplan, insurance is something someone utilizes when unlikely disaster occurs, not for fairly routine events. Rather, Caplan said that conceptually framing the debate not as an expansion of health insurance, but about providing broad based general health care would make more sense.
“Getting your teeth cleaned, or getting your flu shot or having your kid go to the doctor is not insurance, it’s what you have to do. It’s a basic healthcare requirement,” Caplan said. “Let’s get out of this insurance model and call it what it is, then maybe the legislators will look on that with more favor.”
