The worst thing about that article with the three kids getting killed is that it tries to make the kids seem like less of a threat because the only weapon they had was [i]brass knuckles[/i].  I don't know about you, but there is only one real reason why anyway invading a house would have a pair of brass knuckles, obviously so they could use em if necessary.  I see anyone with brass knuckles, you can bet I'd take them down from as far away as possible so as not to get my brains beaten out.

Also with a three on one scenario, even if they didn't have any weapons you could still easily get severely beaten or even killed in such a fight.  A gun is a powerful weapon but doesn't mean jack if they can get to you before you can fire, there was no way the gun user could even think about trying to just shoot one in such close quarters, since any one of those guys, especially with [i]brass knuckles[/i], would have a good chance to kill him otherwise.
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As for Universal Healthcare, basically it comes down to logistics.  Some places have decent 'universal-ish' healthcare, but usually in that case, wait times can be too long to effectively help the people who need it.  How money and resources is distributed in healthcare becomes a major issue as well, especially if the universal healthcare tries to care for patients with very rare illnesses that are extreme outliers on the normal medical market.  How much goes toward general care? Intensive care? Experimental Procedures? Research? Etc.

The sad truth is that any healthcare system that tries to be Universal very quickly becomes bogged down with trying to do too much all at one time.  One of the main things being not enough medical personal to go around to see to everyone's needs, especially more 'minor' issues that might have to be ignored altogether to make way for more critical patients.  Red tape quickly becomes the bane of the industry and the people who want medical services suffer because of it.

Anyway, the US is way to large and unwieldy a place to try and put in a Universal Healthcare System.  It would be much easier for each state to create plans based on their own special circumstances, though even then I'm sure quite a few towns and provinces would still have their own problems.  Medical needs are different depending on where you go in the US.

The best Universal Healthcare anyone can invest in is to live healthfully and to try and prevent problems from happening in the first place.  Preventative care is best care.  Medical care is there for when you need it due to circumstances outside of your control.