Essentially, the public tier is basically an extension of the Medicare/Medicaid programs into the rest of the general public who does not meet the certain qualifications, thus, are given that right. The existing national health insurance programs for the elderly and the poor, Medicare and Medicaid, are being expanded to cover more and more Americans. "Kidcare," tacked on to the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, expands Medicaid to uninsured children of families earning as much as $75,000 per year. A recent plan was introduced to lower the age requirements for Medicare eligibility for certain uninsured populations, the extension into the rest of the public wouldn't be that difficult of a task. Since the healthcare is subsidized by the government, patients are ensured that all the basic necessities and equipment are at all the health care facilities. The clinics all have to keep to date with health care and safety codes, this would also ensures that all medical practices are carried out at government standard throughout the nation. This also allows one to transfer one's files without much hassle because all the hospitals follow the same protocol. This would also allow citizens to travel across the nation without fear of being uninsured, as the system would cover the insured individual whether or not he/she is a resident of that state. In the private tier, this would allow those whom choose to use an alternate healthcare plan which is more suitable to them, or those whom seek further service which is not covered or approved by the public tier. Such practices would include unnecessary plastic surgery, unnecessary medicine such as Viagra, or access to resources which are not certified by the public tier. .
The argument that "public healthcare is too expensive" is a weak one; many states would actually save more money a year if they switched over to a public system of healthcare by doing away with administrative waste, and purchasing medications in bulk.