The ongoing battle to bring affordable health care to all Americans has had it's ups and downs. Looking at the driving forces behind the rising cost of health care in this country brings me to a sobering conclusion. The total cost of health care will not be reduced by the new law, even if it clears the Supreme Court. There are several reasons it will not reduce total health care cost. Now it may reduce the individual cost of health care, because we will basically tax the young and healthy people in this country to pay for the old and unhealthy people, under the president's new law.
The first reason it will not reduce the total cost is the Federal Government controls or allows others to control things like; the number of doctors coming into the workforce each year. That therefore, controls the total number of doctors in the country, which dictates the demand for each doctor, which raises doctor's income. They also restrict foreign doctors from coming into the profession by their laws, too. There is also a restriction of the number of hospitals in a given area, the type of special equipment they have and the special health care they can provide. An example is the number of MRI machines in a community is mandated, therefore providing no incentive for a hospital to lower the cost of a scan. They do not have a nearby competitor, so they keep the cost high.
Where is the nearest hospital that can handle a serious burn? When you find it, locate the next nearest one. Here is a suggestion, don't get burned. The problem is, this applies to many specific illnesses and injuries. How about a specialist? These are controlled by the numbers also, plus the insurance companies will force you to see a specialist on some injuries or illnesses or they won't pay. For you to see some specialist you will need a reference from another doctor, you just can't walk in their door, also your insurance company may not pay any of the bill either. Why is this? It is because this is the most highly regulated business in America. Where did all these regulations come from? Well, federal and states have passed them "for the welfare" of the people. The truth is they were passed because of pressure from the AMA and the insurance companies.
How do we get out of this mess? The very same way one of the other highly regulated industries got out of it and lowered the net cost of the whole industry. That industry was the trucking industry starting in the 1930's until the early 1970's was regulated. One trucking company, Leeway had a stupid sign on the back of every truck, it read: Regulated Rates, Routes and Service. Well, your local hospital and doctor should have a sign on them that says: Regulated Cost, Location and Service, because they are. Translated into layman's language it reads: High cost, Few locations and Poor service.
The only method of lowering the total cost of health care is to deregulate it, wow what a novel idea? This idea when applied to the trucking industry saved billions of dollars each year. Today the United States has one of the lowest cost trucking industries in the world. Was it painful? Yes, but it was worth it. Only the companies who knew how to control cost and provide good service survived. This will increase the number of doctors, pass a test and you are approved, it will increase the number of hospitals and equipment. It will lower insurance cost and reduce the number of health insurance companies. None of the parties involved except the paying public will like this program. Wake up America, put pressure where we can get this done.
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