> Yet many young people in no way require the amount of health coverage older people do. Why should they be forced to buy into something they don't need? Young

> Yet many young people in no way require the amount of health coverage older people do. Why should they be forced to buy into something they don't need? Young people in no way require the amount of health coverage older people do, until they do. And the time at which they do is largely unknown---there are probabilities, but it's still a big gamble. And because in practice when they lose the gamble they get caught in a safety net (i.e. the emergency room at the hospital), people that aren't paying in are really just freeloading. So to answer your question, they aren't. They're being forced to buy into something they do need, but don't admit they need. (...and maybe can't easily afford, which is also a problem, but a separate discussion.)