LETTER: The United States needs socialized medicine

The United States is the only developed nation in the world that doesn’t provide universal health care. The U.S. spends approximately 17 percent of its gross domestic product on health care, compared to an average of 9 percent in the other developed countries. The kicker is that the people in the countries with universal health care live, on average, two years longer than we in the United States live. Do people realize that 75 percent of U.S. bankruptcies are due to medical debts?

This issue has been debated for more than 50 years. Yet neither political party is willing to enact universal health care because they both rely on political contributions from powerful insurance companies.

If President Donald Trump’s BBB (Big Beautiful Bill) is passed, approximately 14 million low-income workers and their families will lose their coverage.