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According to a new survey from Nationwide Insurance, approximately 68 percent of homeowners use alternative heating sources to make it through the winter. These alternative heating sources include fireplaces, wood burning stoves and space heaters. But insurer explains that while these sources may help keep homeowners warm, they cause more fires, which could threaten your homeowners insurance and your life.

Fire Risks Revealed

In Nationwide's survey, they looked at what could be causing what they found to be an increase in home fires over the past few winters. After surveying 1,000 Americans, they discovered that homeowners participate in the following fire risks:

• 29 percent don't turn off their space heater when going to bed
• 13 percent use their oven to heat their kitchen
• 11 percent use an extension cord with their space heater
• 41 percent do not have their chimneys inspected each year
• 38 percent don't own carbon monoxide detectors

The insurer acknowledge that need for homeowners to stay warm while lowering their heating costs, but noted that the above solutions are not wise and could cause fires in the home.

Tips for Staying Safe and Warm During the Winter

Nationwide offered some tips to help keep you warm while remaining safethis winter:

• Plug your electric space heater into an outlet greater capacity than an electric cord. If you must use a cord, make sure it's marked "14-gauge wire" or higher.
• Place your heater on a level, hard and nonflammable surface - not on a carpet or rug - and at least three feet away from bedding, furniture and drapes.
• Have your flues, chimneys and heaters inspected annually.
• Have working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors installed on every level in your home.
• Never use charcoal in a fireplace because it increases the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Don't use a kitchen range or oven to heat your home - it could release excessive carbon monoxide.
• Dispose of ashes from your fireplace or wood burning stove away from your home and in a metal can - after wetting the ashes.

The National Fire Protection Association revealed that there are 64,000 home heating fires annually in the U.S. alone. These fires result in approximately 540 deaths and 1,400 injuries. To make sure you're not the next victim, it's good to keep your home as fire-proof as possible during the winter months.

With all of the debate over health care in recent months, many have questioned whether our current health care system - or the many proposed versions of the health care overhaul - are sufficient enough to provide satisfactory care for the country. In fact, some believe that the United States should operate under a universal health care system like most other countries instead of sticking with private care options. (See our comparison of U.S. health care and the rest of the world)

In the countries that operate under this type of health care system, all citizens are required to receive some type of care, which is not the case in the United States. But despite the United States having steered clear of mandated coverage for years, is it a better health care system?

The Basics of Universal Health Care

Universal health care is a system that functions on a national level (as opposed to various private insurers working independently), and is sometimes referred to as national health care. It is by no means a new concept. In fact, the first universal health care system was achieved in Germany in the 1880s.

Since then, 32 of the 33 developed nations have adopted some type of universal health plan for their citizens. The only country that has yet to take on this type of plan is the United States.

The countries that operate under a national health care system offer one of three types of payment options:

• Single Payer: Under the single payer plan, the government provides insurance for all residents and pays all health care expenses except co-pays and coinsurance. The providers of the care may be private, public or a combination of the two.
• Two-Tier: For the countries that function under two-tier payment plans, the government provides or mandates catastrophic (or minimum) insurance coverage for all of its residents. At the same time, it allows residents to purchase additional voluntary insurance or fee-for-service care whenever they like.
• Insurance Mandate: Under this type of payment option, the government requires everyone to purchase insurance, whether it's through private, public or non-profit insurers. This type of system prohibits insurers from barring individuals with preexisting conditions.

The United States' current health care system is equal to none of the above; however, certain proposals to the health care overhaul could place it between the two-tier system and the insurance mandate. What will actually occur has yet to be determined.

Why Does the U.S. Avoids Socialized Health Care?

As the health care overhaul gets passed around in Congress, most Republicans have fought against any type of health care system that looks socialized. Socialized health care is defined as publicly-funded health care that is controlled by the government (i.e. the single payer plan).

So why is much of America against socializing health care? Here are a few arguments that have surfaced:

1. It is believed that this type of system would be a governmental intrusion into health care, resulting in a lack of control for citizens
2. A universal system could never be as efficient as private health insurers
3. Socialized medicine wouldn't be as effective as private medicine

But some also argue that there are benefits associated with this form of health care, including:

1. Mandatory health care for the nation, which could help to lower death rates associated with a lack of insurance
2. Health care costs that would be more affordable, especially with government contributions
3. Greater access to better facilities for all citizens

Those who stand against universal health care believe that the system we have is sufficient; however, those who argue in favor a universal health plan question whether America has been able to stand up to the countries offering this type of system.

U.S. Health Care Statistics

There have been plenty of published reports over the last few decades looking at the state of America's health care system. What's interesting is that in many instances, reports have found that our nation's health care has not measured up to countries that offer a universal form of health care.

For instance, in 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) ranked the United States 37th in the world for health care despite the fact that we offer some of the most advanced medical technologies and facilities in the world. In addition, 2009 data from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) found that total health spending for the U.S. in 2007 was 16 percent of the gross national product, which was considerably higher than the worldwide average of 8.9 percent.

Also, infant mortality in the United States is higher than over 40 countries, including Slovenia, Germany and Spain, according to the CIA World Factbook. And the life expectancy for Americans ranks below nearly 50 countries with an average age of 78.11 (Canada, Australia and France all have average life expectancies above 80 years old).

After looking over the data, most figures point to the United States falling short in the health care arena. Even more ironic is that the majority of the countries that rank higher than the U.S. operate under universal health care systems.

To date, there are still 46 million people without health insurance in the United States, which means a large number of people are going without the appropriate health care, which many argue accounts for the below average numbers. Therefore, while the nation is fighting against universal health care, it seems to be both a cost-effective and comprehensive option for other countries. If you're in need of quality health care and are still uninsured, fill out our online health insurance form and you'll receive affordable health insurance quotes immediately. There are cost-effective solutions available to ensure you don't have to go uninsured.

GIR Question of the Day: Do you think we could benefit from universal health care?

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