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Zonie63 -> RE: US Health Care Costs (11/21/2014 4:32:50 AM)
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ORIGINAL: DesideriScuri
1. Why does Health Care Insurance Cost so much?
I contend that insurance costs so much because cost for treatments and procedures costs so much.
I would not make that assumption. Considering how much insurance companies pay their CEOs and how much they must have spent on their big beautiful expensive office buildings, they surely must have money to burn in the insurance industry. They don't look like they're cutting to the bone.
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That begs the question:
2. Why do procedures and treatments cost so much?
3. Is it inflated costing by the hospitals/providers?
I wouldn't put it past them to inflate the costs, although it may not be the hospitals as much as the equipment manufacturers and the pharmaceutical companies. The hospitals themselves may be part of the problem, but I think they're far lower on the food chain. I would also cut the hospitals a bit of slack since they're required by law to treat anyone who requires their services, no matter if they can afford to pay or not. As a result, it's the hospitals and other providers who are forced to eat those costs incurred by deadbeat patients, whereas the insurance companies, equipment manufacturers, and pharmaceutical companies don't have to contend with that. Their attitude is, "Fuck you, pay me."
So, if hospitals have to inflate the costs in other areas to make up for their losses, it may be because they're stuck between a rock and a hard place. Besides, the hospitals are the ones doing the actual work and dealing with the patients on a face-to-face basis, whereas the insurance companies are just sitting in their offices doing absolutely nothing. Kind of like what government bureaucrats do, except bureaucrats are far less expensive than insurance company executives. The equipment manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies are still creating useful products, although they're still buffered and insulated from the actual process of patient care.
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4. What do you think would happen if the Federal Government took over the Administration of Health Care by running the hospitals? That is, how would costs change if the US Government was the Administrators of the care providers, paying a fair wage to the Administrative staff and only charging what it actually costs to cover the cost of supplies, those administrative costs, and pay the care providers (assuming care providers were self-employed contractors, charging what they wanted)?
They don't really have to take over the administration of healthcare; all they really have to do is impose price controls. However, if they were going to take over administration of healthcare, it would have to entail more than just running the hospitals. They'd have to take over the equipment manufacturers and the pharmaceutical companies as well.
As far as what would happen, one thing that seems apparent is that it would relieve a great deal of pressure off the average working class American, as they would not have to shell out a significant portion of their weekly earnings just to cover health insurance costs. This would free up more disposable income for millions which could then be spent in other sectors and stimulate the economy. Bankruptcies due to high medical bills would also be reduced, and this would also have a positive effect on our economy.
I know you and I have had discussions about the Federal government before, particularly the size of government and the level of interference in the private sector. There seems to be an underlying assumption that, no matter what the Federal government chooses to do, they'll always do it badly and inefficiently. This is what feeds the viewpoint that, if the Federal government was put in charge of healthcare, it'll just turn into one big mess of bureaucracy, inefficiency, corruption, and waste.
I will say this: Regardless of how we pay for it, whether through tax dollars or insurance premiums/co-pays, we the taxpayers/insured have every right to expect something for our money.
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