Universal basic income is a complex issue. First, you need to see it as a part of the existing system: healthcare, education, law enforcement, prisons, etc. -

Universal basic income is a complex issue. First, you need to see it as a part of the existing system: healthcare, education, law enforcement, prisons, etc. - A hospital cannot deny care to a patient in an emergency situation. Many medical emergencies occur due to poor living conditions. If you give money to people, their living conditions improve, improving their health and reducing their chances of getting in a medical emergency situation. - Law enforcement spends a lot of resources and time handling crime. Given money to people is a deterrent for crime. - Did you know that having a person in prison is more expensive than having them on a hotel? Since giving money to people deters crime, it also prevents them going to prison. So, in this respect, just by having people do absolutely nothing, you can end up saving money. This is unintuitive. Now, universal basic income can be bad in some cases. Many people in the economy do whatever it takes to have an income, however low. They will risk their lives, their health, do things they don't want to do. Universal basic income gives people an option to not engage in those activities.