SELINSGROVE -- Universal health-care coverage: To be or not to be?

That was the question at Thursday night's program in the Degenstein Center Theater at Susquehanna University, moderated by Allan D. Sobel, director of the Arlin M. Adams Center for Law and Society.

Health care always has been a major issue in America, and under the new political regime, it has become an even bigger one with President Obama's push for change in funding and availability. Thursday night's discussion concluded the university's two-day symposium on health-care reform.

Presenting the two sides of the issue were Devon Herrick, senior fellow of the National Center for Policy Analysis, and Claudia Fegan, a board-certified internist and former president of Physicians for a National Health Program.

"I am in favor of everyone having access to health care," Herrick said. "I am opposed to the current view on how they plan to achieve universal health care."

Access to health care is problematic, the quality is inconsistent and the cost is high, Herrick said.

Last year, Americans spent $2.3 million on health care costs. The reason, he said, is because of increased longevity, the overuse of third-party payment, low cost control and less out-of-pocket payments.

Obama's proposal is for mandated health insurance, but Herrick said he believes those goals will not be achieved for several reasons. Mandated insurance is difficult to enforce, he said, and will drive up the cost of coverage and encourage special-interest groups while reducing consumer choice.

Mandated acceptance by health insurance providers would encourage Americans to wait to obtain insurance until it is needed, and mandated benefits would increase the cost for each person, even though the person may not need specific coverage, Herrick argued.

But Fegan, a proponent of single-payer health care, which means every American is covered by a government-run health-care system, said a universal health-care system is for the societal good.

There are 45.7 million Americans who are uninsured, and 50 million more who are under-insured, she said.

"The whole issue is a civil-rights issue for the 20th century," she said. Some day, if things continue as they are, she said people will be looking back and asking, "How could we have done that to 45 million people?"

Her proposal argues that access to health care is a human right, and all people should have the right to choose or change their physician. Pursuit of corporate profit and personal fortune has no place in health care, and personal medical decisions must be made by the patient, Fegan said.

Americans must agree on removing financial barriers and financial harm. "No one who gets the care they need should have to lose their home, car or dignity," she said. Also, the insurance industry should not determine who can and cannot get health care, she argued.

The two-day symposium included a keynote presentation on Wednesday by Jonathan Cohn, author of "Sick: The Untold Story of America's Health Care Crisis -- and the People Who Pay the Price," and panel discussions with professionals throughout the day Thursday.