Universal health care will not eliminate deaths due to medical errors.
This is logical but it was not argued that it did. The point being made was that when health care services are delayed and emergent care is used in place of primary care the "system" becomes very expensive. On top of that, adding insult to injury $17-29 billion dollars goes down the drain because of medical errors--see previous source. That's a huge chunk of change.
Emergency surgery is very different than elective surgery
This goes without saying and does not run counter to any argument stated above but rather, appears to support them. The types of Errors (Diagnostic, Treatment,Preventative) occur regardless if the surgery is elective or emergent. i.e. The wrong knee has been operated on--sorry come back tomorrow and we'll correct it.!
And there are many without health insurance but how many are without by choice, that is they can have it but don't want it for whatever reason (religious or wealthy)?
How many? I would say of the 46million uninsured (see source below), this number is negligent, if even counted. The assumption runs against those who want it. If you are wealthy--you can choose pay for service, so why pay a premium? And now, with High deductible "Health Saving Accounts" that are pretax dollars, this is a logical choice, if you have the money. Others may not have that choice,"the main reason that adults’ private insurance coverage has faded in recent years is that the costs of insurance premiums have climbed, making coverage less affordable for employers and employees alike."
http://www.cbpp.org/8-29-06health.htm
Don't forget, everyone in congress, along with getting to vote on their own pay raises, also gets "free" health insurance for life! Do a google search on "Health Care Expenditures as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product" and you can find a lot of literature estimating this number is between 14-16% of America's GDP.
Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does.
Jean Paul Sartre