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The Good Samaritan and Healthcare Reform

The heated dialog about healthcare reform often divides Christians. For the past 40 years the abortion issue has done the same thing. There's an interesting switch in polarity now, however. When it comes to abortion, Christians on the "conservative" (whatever that means) end of the spectrum think they know what is right and are ready to force their conclusions on everyone else. Christians on the left advocate "choice" and have used slogans like "keep your hands off my body." Polarity is reversed in the healthcare culture wars. Now it's the left that knows what everybody needs and is pressing for the government to do it. And it's the right end of the spectrum that's squawking about choice and "keep your hands off my healthcare."

Amidst all the hubbub, a curious story turned up on ABC Evening News last night. It was about groups of Christians who have organized their own "health care co-ops". The basic idea is that everyone participating in the plan agrees to pay so many dollars each month to help pay the medical bills of someone they choose who is sick. So basically you throw out the insurance companies, throw out most of the paperwork, throw out most of the overhead, and have people helping people. (Not all overhead is eliminated. There's a central agency that processes "claims" from people with medical expenses and validates them, and which "publishes" the list of those who need help so that participants can pick whom to send their checks to.)

Participants in the group are quick to point out that this is not "insurance." There are no guarantees. After all, it's all based on "faith."

I recommend that you watch the segment on Youtube. Just for laughs if nothing else. It can't possibly work, right? Better to let the government take care of it. After all, governments know how to manage things. (Like financial institutions.)

Some people are just plain impractical. They believe in foolish things like loving their neighbors and giving away wealth. We present-day good Samaritans know better. We just ask the government to do it. Jesus was just born too early. If he had arrived in the 20th century he'd know better than to tell such fairy tales.