Fans of “let-the-market-decide” thinking face a trillion-dollar puzzle that’s deadly as well as costly. To diagnose this unhealthy situation, we’re fortunate to have Robert Frank (RF), an economist who writes regularly for The New York Times (he’s also written books I regularly quote).
Evonomics
The American Healthcare System Shows Why We Can’t Trust Free Market Ideologues
Jag Bhalla interviews Robert H. Frank
5 comments:
I'm calling bullshit in this:
"The problem with private insurance is that it tends to break down when potential policy holders have much better information about their individual risks than insurers do."
The problem with private insurance is that it is designed to maximize profits, which is achieved by minimizing costs (delivery of care).
Capitalism works for bake beans and cars, where people understand what they are getting, but when it comes to things involving a lot of money with lots of complicated paperwork it's best left to the government.
In the UK a team of experts can go over health care proposals, check all the fine print, and get the best deals. Then they can bulk buy the drugs and equipment getting the lowest prices.
I've been brought to with the NHS and I have never had to work out complicated health insurance policies where I would be sure that the insurance company is working against my interest.
If I get sick I just rung my GP and get an appointment in a few days time. And I can ring them instead between 12pm and 1 pm for advice, and if it is more serious they will ring back within a few hours at any time.
We have a national hot line service where we will be put through to our local NHS for medical advice and they will arrange for an ambulance for you is you need to be checked out - and all the time you never have to worry about cost, all free (okay, I know, paid by us through taxes) It's absolutely brilliant.
There are mental health hot lines and occupational health where people who have had breakdowns are helped to get back integrated into society.
Need I go on, the whole thing is fucking brilliant and at fraction of the cost of US health care.
And guess what, the libertarians go on and on about freedom and liberty, but not having to worry about health care costs gives me fantastic freedom to get on with other things in my life like my hobbies, or whatever. As well as freedom from worry about such an expensive and complicated thing. It's a breeze!
Please stop saying we have a free market when the rich are allowed to loot the poor via government-privileged private credit creation.
Or is eliminating freedom rather than promoting justice the objective?
I don't really get the rich, why they always want more. The Brits robbed India and Africa, but they weren't happy, they always wanted China and Russia too.
Does there come a point where tot can't invest your wealth anymore? That there is nowhere to put it. When the rich run out of places to out their money they started the privatisation program. But now they have almost everything they want the NHS in the UK too.
Surely they have to accept that there will be a time when there in nowhere to invest their money anymore rather than destroy the planet at an exponential rate.
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