The new model for an old system

Or, "I told you so," again.

The current version of ObamaCare is a watered down amalgamation of compromises built on one Progressive premise: Single Payer System is the goal.  They started their overhaul of 1/6th of the US economy with that end in mind, weren't able to get there completely this time (mostly due to voter outrage), and settled on something that Conservatives will still hate for too many reasons to list and Progressives will despise because it's not pure enough.  But, as Bob says, "baby steps".
Well cool.  But let's take a peek into the future and see what the adults over in Great Britain are doing, now that they've had the NHS single-payer system for sixty years:

An investigation by The Sunday Telegraph has uncovered widespread cuts planned across the NHS, many of which have already been agreed by senior health service officials. They include:
* Restrictions on some of the most basic and common operations, including hip and knee replacements, cataract surgery and orthodontic procedures.
* Plans to cut hundreds of thousands of pounds from budgets for the terminally ill, with dying cancer patients to be told to manage their own symptoms if their condition worsens at evenings or weekends.
* The closure of nursing homes for the elderly.
* A reduction in acute hospital beds, including those for the mentally ill, with targets to discourage GPs from sending patients to hospitals and reduce the number of people using accident and emergency departments.
* Tighter rationing of NHS funding for IVF treatment, and for surgery for obesity.
* Thousands of job losses at NHS hospitals, including 500 staff to go at a trust where cancer patients recently suffered delays in diagnosis and treatment because of staff shortages.
* Cost-cutting programmes in paediatric and maternity services, care of the elderly and services that provide respite breaks to long-term carers.

 Hm.

Oh yes.  And this:

The Sunday Telegraph found the details of hundreds of cuts buried in obscure appendices to lengthy policy and strategy documents published by trusts. In most cases, local communities appear to be unaware of the plans. (emphasis mine)

The "trusts" referenced above are Primary Care Trusts, government agencies in charge of patient health decisions like when, where, how, and by whom patients are treated.  Way to be forthcoming and honest there, buckos.

Hm, indeed.  So what we've got here is pretty much what I've said a few times before.  Single-payer systems lead inevitably to rationing.  Who gets rationed out first?  The unproductive (ie. those who suck up more tax dollars than they pay in).  Which means the very young, the very old, and the infirm.  Go back and look at the list of cuts made by the NHS.  Who gets affected most?

Exactly.

Do you know anyone who is very young, very old, or infirm?  Do you want some bureaucrat in a dark office in Washington making medical decisions that will affect the quality of life of those people?  Do you want government inefficiencies (shortages, essentially) to be responsible for the death of those people?  And then these folks who think they can run your life, health, and death better than you can have the elephantine stones to BURY THEIR CUTS TO YOUR HEALTH SERVICES IN THE DAMN FOOTNOTES OF DOCUMENTS NO ONE WILL EVER READ?

You people sicken me. 

Which would be fine, except that if I get sick in a single-payer system, I might never get well again.