The Voice of Young Conservatives Blog

Europe has always been a bastion of progressivism. In the United States, liberals have trumpeted the success of their social programs, suggesting that we should follow down their righteous path. Conservatives, on the other hand, have pointed out the staggering budget problems European countries, especially those that are considered Western, have consistently wrestled with.

Let’s take a look at Britain. Aside from being a steadfast U.S. ally in military operations, its political makeup has always been slightly different from ours—and that’s what made the relationship “special” and unique. Now, however, we’ve got a President and certain members of Congress who are pushing for us to become more like them—especially when it comes to health care.

Here’s the deal: the U.K. has a debt topping $900 billion (and they’ve got their own version of their debt clock…although $900 billion doesn’t seem quite as scary as $1.3 trillion). Since they’re going through the same debt crisis we are, they’re finding ways to cut corners.

And what social program is first on the chopping block? The National Health Service. In the wake of a major budget crisis, one of the first programs to be scaled back is one that directly affects the well-being of British citizens.

The cuts in funding have been called “astonishingly brutal”, as even the most common and simple surgeries and procedures will now be rationed. A recent Telegraph article itemizes just how deep the budget cuts will go in to the nation’s publicly funded health care system:

* Restrictions on some of the most basic and common operations, including hip and knee replacements, cataract surgery and orthodontic procedures.

* Plans to cut hundreds of thousands of pounds from budgets for the terminally ill, with dying cancer patients to be told to manage their own symptoms if their condition worsens at evenings or weekends.

* The closure of nursing homes for the elderly.

* A reduction in acute hospital beds, including those for the mentally ill, with targets to discourage GPs from sending patients to hospitals and reduce the number of people using accident and emergency departments.

* Tighter rationing of NHS funding for IVF treatment, and for surgery for obesity.

* Thousands of job losses at NHS hospitals, including 500 staff to go at a trust where cancer patients recently suffered delays in diagnosis and treatment because of staff shortages.

* Cost-cutting programs in pediatric and maternity services, care of the elderly, and services that provide respite breaks to long-term careers.

This is bad news for the British. Yet what really baffles me is that the Democrats, all the while watching this implosion of the British health care system, are still trying to push ours in that very same direction. Harry Reid said just yesterday: “we’re going to have a public option, it’s just a question of when.” This statement reflects similar sentiments that the President and the lovely Speaker Pelosi expressed earlier this week.

What is it that our leadership isn’t getting? Usually, lessons are learned from experience and history. We have all been forewarned to let not history repeat itself. So, when we see Britain having to ration health care services because it’s bankrupting their nation, it would hardly seem irrational to expect our leaders to think the same about the policies they’re pushing.

But they’re not. Despite our debt, and the public outrage, and the public opinion polls, and midterm elections that are expected to annihilate the Democrats, and a living example of just how awful and inefficient centralized health care systems are, Reid and his friends just won’t give up when it comes to health care.

It’s a bad sign for the U.S. when we start emulating Europe just as they’re starting to wake up and back peddle to common sense policies, a place the United States used to call home. But it’s even worse when we have a triumvirate in power (Pelosi, Reid, and Obama) that continues to defy all logical reasoning simply for the sake of a misguided political agenda.

By Leah Dow (edited by Samantha Cohen)