Editorial: Healthcare and Sustainability

By Bart King The stimulus package signed into law on Tuesday by President Obama was created in an effort to juice the stalled economy and reverse the growing unemployment rate in America. However, lost jobs—particularly in the middle class—would be a crisis of lesser size, if healthcare were affordable to individuals. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad the new legislation prioritizes job creation through renewable energy, public transportation, energy efficiency and other green initiatives. But a wider view of the nation’s sustainability—the “triple bottom line” of not only environmental needs, but also the needs of the economy and society—reveals the health care situation is nearly as burdensome as our dependence on fossil fuels. An entrepreneurial spirit is arguably the greatest and most defining characteristic of American culture. I’d be willing to bet three out of five American adults (and maybe kids, too) have a business idea that incorporates some aspect of their personal interests or experiences. But this ingenuity is suppressed, to the detriment of the nation’s economic and societal potential, by a fear of inflated healthcare costs. Many skilled workers with a severance package in hand would likely take the opportunity to pursue the dream of self-employment. Except in […]

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