Paul Krugman, perpetuating the myth that SCHIP is about “the children,” advises his long-suffering readers that expansion of that program is analogous to providing public education:
We offer free education because giving every child a fair chance is the American way. And we should guarantee health care to every child, for the same reason.
The first point that should be made in response to Krugman’s disingenuous analogy is that the government monopoly on education has hardly been an unalloyed benefit to “the children.” That issue is explored here.
And, even if the government school system were a success, it certainly isn’t free. Despite the oft-repeated canard that we don’t spend enough on it, public “education” absorbs about twice as many taxpayer dollars as does national defense.
But the main point is that SCHIP expansion isn’t analogous to education. For good or ill, the public school system was conceived in response to a real need. There is no comparable need in health care.
As Krugman knows, SCHIP isn’t really about “the children.” As discussed here, the SCHIP money that congress originally intended for low-income, uninsured kids has been increasingly diverted to adults.
In reality, SCHIP is a Trojan horse for socialized medicine, and Krugman is analogous to Sinon. His dishonest counsel should be ignored.
NOTE: Anyone not wishing to squander hard-earned money on a subscription to the New York Times can find the text of Krugman’s column at Economist’s View.
UPDATE: Tim Worstall has some interesting input on Krugman’s public school analogy.
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