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Although I have been fortunate enough to have had sufficient health care insurance for my own needs, the lack of universal health care has affected my career and my business.I used to be an academic mathematician. Now I am a landlord and a real-estate developer. If there had been universal health care in this country, I would probably have switched careers sooner. In any case, there are a lot of people who hesitate to leave mediocre jobs to strike out on their own because of the cost of health care. At its best, American capitalism allows small businesses to flourish as individuals look around their communities, identify needs, and fill them. Security of health care coverage will encourage more small business.
I also know people who have gotten married, or stayed married when they were in every other way divorced, in order to provide health care for one of the parties. Talk about the sanctity of the institution!
A few years ago, a lovely tenant of mine (who not only paid his rent on time, but kept the place clean and was a nice nice guy) moved out because his mother was ill and he could no longer afford to pay the rent. This man is gainfully employed by the City of Philadelphia and earns a decent salary. The rent on the house was not extravagant. But it was more than he could pay while paying half of his mother's medical expenses.
And, of course, as an employer, I feel the pain of paying health insurance for my employees.
