[utahagen]

I agree that something needs to be done, which is why I think perhaps the state should mandate that people buy medical insurance. It drives me nuts that people will pay $125 a month for cable TV, but won’t pay that much for their own medical insurance. I’d say that’s their choice and their problem, except that hospitals don’t turn people away and most people don’t pay their medical bills. So, the taxpayer picks up the tab. (The type of people a hospital would bother suing are the responsible types who would never not have medical insurance in the first place.) In Southern California, your chances of getting sued by a hospital are very low and, if you are sued, they will happily cut a deal with you. It’s is, indeed, a big problem.

[GeorgefromGeorgia]

You have a point. What enforcement mechanism would be used to force people to buy insurance? It seems to me if the people not buying insurance are so irresponsible, that it would take criminal penalties. When Georgia first made auto insurance mandatory, the fine for not having insurance was $50. That turned out to be no penalty at all. What Georgia does now is to require insurance companies to electronically furnish the state DPS with proof of insurance for the individual prior to that person acquiring state license plates. This is a real pain in the butt for anyone moving to the state, since they generally don’t change their state of residence until after they register their cars.