I am not going to try to change your mind, in fact, I largely agree with what you're saying. It's a very complicated and contentious issue in the US. First, we

I am not going to try to change your mind, in fact, I largely agree with what you're saying. It's a very complicated and contentious issue in the US. First, we have a strange relationship with taxes. The highest amounts are paid to the Federal Government (at the nation-level) and as you travel down the chain to state and then local (city/county), less tax money is owed to these places typically. Regardless of where someone sits on the political spectrum, it is widely accepted that the federal government does not efficiently spend the money, with citizens receiving no tangible value. For example, during the pandemic, many people got $1200 stimulus checks and a "good luck" even though taxpayers fork over thousands over the course of their lives. Stuff that actually affects our lives directly is often done at the local level, with roads, for example, funded by a tax on gas in California (and some federal dollars, too). Given the perception of how grossly incompetent, understaffed, or ill-prepared government offices are to deal with anything, people are not exactly lining up to have such an inefficient system provide them with insurance. We also have an accessibility problem in that every process that one must initiate to receive most government benefits, is rife with bureaucratic, over-reaching, and easy to mess-up paperwork designed by people who's goal it is to dish out as few benefits as possible. Having spent a bit of time in Germany myself, it's clear the attitude is different. Germans (and EU citizens) actually receive benefits from the taxes they pay that are both accessible and tangible. Having medical expenses paid by the state via taxation is ultimately what creates a more healthy society. Second is the fact that we allow large lobbies and organizations (like insurance companies) to influence what legislation gets passed. This is also so far removed from people's every day life that this sort of non-corruption, special-interest sway happens all the time. Insurance companies have a great thing going on for them, imagine being able to charge whatever you want and be wildly inept and unwilling to actually provide services (pay out) when your customer requires it as per the policy you sold them. They fund (behind the scenes) mass-marketing campaigns (yes, instead of paying actual claims) that spread propaganda about how bad healthcare is if left up to the government. There are other problems, but maybe this helps see why it's such a big social issue here. This is just my take on what I find to be two major ones.