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You can certainly choose not to smoke, and to exercise, and to take care of yourself in general. We do introduce a principal agent problem into the mix when we
by bmmayer1 14y ago
You can certainly choose not to smoke, and to exercise, and to take care of yourself in general. We do introduce a principal agent problem into the mix when we start letting people get their healthcare paid for by other people.
- untog 14y agoYes, and that's why I added "often" to my last sentence. But while you can certainly avoid some illnesses by making good life choices, it's still out of your control. You can have never touched a cigarette and still get lung cancer. In fact, that opens up another reason for public healthcare- many illnesses are caused by society as a whole. That second hand smoke from the man sat next to you at the bus stop is an individual thing, but the pollution coming out of the power station on the edge of town is a far broader issue. You could say "fine the power company!", but that's short sighted- everyone benefits from the power they provide. As a society we have decided that x level of pollution is acceptable in order for us to have y level of comfort. The side variable is the number of illnesses caused by that pollution, and I think there's a strong argument that the costs of that should be borne by society.
- bmmayer1 14y agoI agree, but eventually everyone does bear the cost as individuals.
- deleted 14y ago[deleted]