Why not have a team of doctorates and top professionals figure it all out instead for you while you just go fishing instead, or dancing, or take a snooze, or whatever, and actually save a bundle at the same time? Now that's freedom! I never have to fill any forms in, or anything, I just turn up and get my treatment. And now I get free prescriptions at the chemist and as they know me I don't have to show any ID and I don't have to sign any forms, and I just walk in and walk out with it. Now that's liberty and freedom, not a worry in the world.
Even more strange, Americans actually pay more tax for their healthcare than people do in other Western countries, which means we pay less tax and get just as much healthcare, while you have to pay for private insurance on top as well. Wow, your private healthcare industry is getting paid double.
Imagine if your company could win the contract to supply all the replacement hips to the UK NHS, well, that's a big contract, so all replacement hip manufactures are going to do their utter best to win that bid, and when they do win, the economies of scale will help reduce prices and increase their profits.
So, as you can see, socialist economies can get lower prices and make capitalism more competitive. Libertarians can never beat this.
In which John discusses the complicated reasons why the United States spends so much more on health care than any other country in the world, and along the way reveals some surprising information, including that Americans spend more of their tax dollars on public health care than people in Canada, the UK, or Australia. Who's at fault? Insurance companies? Drug companies? Malpractice lawyers? Hospitals? Or is it more complicated than a simple blame game? (Hint: It's that one.) For a much more thorough examination of health care expenses in America, I recommend this series at The Incidental Economist: http://theincidentaleconomist.com/wor... The Commonwealth Fund's Study of Health Care Prices in the US: http://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/med... Some of the stats in this video also come from this New York Times story: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/02/hea... This is the first part in what will be a periodic series on health care costs and reforms leading up to the introduction of the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, in 2014.
Who the F cares what it costs???
ReplyDeleteWho the F cares what Franko thinks / says / writes?
ReplyDeleteWho the F cares what it costs??
ReplyDeleteBecause the cost difference suggests inefficiency. That can be due to methods but it can also result from rent extraction. Methods can be improved and rent extraction can be reduced or eliminated.
It's necessary to do a root cause analysis to determine the factors involved in order to address them.
The claim that the USA has a "free market" in health care is dishonest, false and absurd. Ever hear of a "Certificate of Need"? And that is just for starters.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.mercatus.org/publication/certificate-need-laws-implications-michigan
It's like calling our system of government controlled "Modern Money" laissez faire. But you guys still do it all the time.
There is no developed country I am aware of without a managed currency and a managed economy.
ReplyDeleteFor one thing, all developed countries have central banks.
Who here has said otherwise?
I don’t know where I picked this up but I’ve understood that Medicare charges a good deal less than what insurance companies representing corporations and individuals pay. And the savings are significant. Hence the idea that a good beginning on cost is to limit all payments to what Medicare charges. Anyone comment on that?
ReplyDeleteI am on Medicare and can attest that what Medicare pays is generally minuscule in comparison with what's billed. Insurance companies only get about a 30% discount I am told by friend in the industry. Those with no coverage pay the full freight unless they can negotiate the price down.
ReplyDeleteInsurance companies only get about a 30% discount
ReplyDeleteMaybe different elsewhere but in NY insurers set the rates for all procedures from office visits on up. Doctors can't tell you what the charge will be because the insurers won't tell them.
Before BO care providers were generally happy to negotiate with patients because insurers were notoriously stingy and late with payments. Getting half (or less) in cash was infinitely preferable to getting 30% in six months.
Now that insurers are the gatekeepers to all care they are still notoriously stingy and late with payments - the difference is that those without insurance pay full retail.
Bob Roddis has overlooked the whole point which is the government can employ the finest brains who as a team can figure out the best deal for a nations public healthcare. Individualism will never beat that. The same can be shown for lots of other public services.
ReplyDeletethe problem is not government, but one that is captured by the elite.
"government can employ the finest brains who as a team can figure out the best deal for a nation"
ReplyDeleteLike Jonathan Gruber?