Like most government proposals, there is an assumption that we can solve the problem by spending more money. But history will evidence that the more we spend on healthcare, the greater the problem. If we are serious about becoming a first world country, we should implement solutions, not short-term responses.
Over 80% of the diseases and medical conditions requiring treatment are metabolic diseases, for which the answer is education, not ever more expensive medical interventions.
Most people eat the wrong foods, eat too often, and eat too much. They are poisoning themselves with lifestyle and foods resulting in obesity, diabetes, cancers, high blood pressure, organ diseases, Alzheimer’s and more.
People are getting sicker, whilst living longer, as we get more affluent. And ‘healthcare’ is really sick care, as we respond to these diseases with medicine instead of prevention through education and the right government incentives to change unhealthy lifestyles.
Your argument is attractive to voters; tax the foreigners and protect locals. But we cannot destroy the attractiveness of the Caymans by implementing property taxes just to raise more revenue.
In any case, we will have to keep raising taxes until ‘healthcare’ becomes too costly to deliver, because very soon, whatever increases in spending you make will not be enough.
The problem is not lack of spending, but lack of vision. Move the focus away from sick care to real health care. We can spend less and achieve more, with vision.
Patrick Beersingh
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