Government Health Care Kills

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell is calling on the Pennsylvania Senate leadership to break their pledge not to hold a lame duck session. Among Rendell’s rhetorical arguments is that “nearly two people a day die in Pennsylvania because of a lack of health insurance.”

The Commonwealth Foundation’s response, tongue-in-cheek, is that 10 Pennsylvanians die every day because of government involvement in health care.

Of course, no one really dies because they lack insurance or because they enroll in Medicaid, but the point (besides exposing Rendell’s demagoguery) is that government health insurance—which Governor Rendell sees as the solution—is worse than the disease.

Instead, we should look to options that allow more individuals to enroll in private coverage.