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For some things maybe. The cost of simple things wouldn't change much. Maybe some of the expensive things might change. But do we want to unregulate hospitals and at the same time engage full malpractice tort reform? Talk about the Tea party nirvana of every man for himself! And you can't take insurance out of it all. Health care costs are way too unpredictable and risky. Especially as we age.
bold: It doesn't need to. It's not expensive in the first place.
The only part of your post that's true is bolded now.
wow, you have a limited grasp of reality.
REALITY: most people live from paycheck to paycheck. Making sudden medical expenses unaffordable
REALITY: having a baby is more expensive then most people can afford in a 9 month period.
I guess you need Obamafood and Obamahousing and Obamaclothes and Obamawater and Obamaair, then.
None of these others compare to HC costs serious shortcomings. And that is the very serious uptick of costs as one ages. And that is the very biggest nut to figure out how to crack. Because the simple HC problems with most younger working people are not the great future cost disaster.
But HC and insurance costs are still a very big issue with those same folks.
So we have two major problems.
Controlling the more simple HC costs of the masses.
And senior care.
More typical free markets tend to work better with medical care encounters that are more optional and elective. Like cosmetic and Lasik eye work. One can fairly easily travel for cheaper as most dental work is not emergent or life threatening. So more typical free markets do their thing.
It's easy. A free market hasn't barriers to entry, so there WILL be price competition, and those prices will NOT be insane.
Which is why all you really need is a no-frills high deductible policy.
It's not so easy for many folks. And there could be many reasons for that. There are commonly barriers.
For instance lack of Access.
Mobility.
Knowledge.
Distance.
Contacts.
So fine, none are insurmountable.
So hospital A will take care of your abdominal pain for $2000....smaller and smaller print...
Hospital B $1500...even smaller print.
No, only 5% of the population would be able to afford decent health coverage in that case.
Baloney! Without the scam that is insurance, medical costs would drop like a rock.
Insurance is the biggest scam known to mankind.
Even now, paying cash gets huge discounts. Try it. You'll learn from it. I learned the hard way when I had a heart attack with no insurance. Cash talks and the discounts are astonishing.
Baloney! Without the scam that is insurance, medical costs would drop like a rock.
Insurance is the biggest scam known to mankind.
Even now, paying cash gets huge discounts. Try it. You'll learn from it. I learned the hard way when I had a heart attack with no insurance. Cash talks and the discounts are astonishing.
Could the United States have a total free market health care?
No Medicare, no Medicaid, no health insurance companies, no Tricare, etc. Just a pure cash only (or debit/credit card) system.
Do you think that could work?
I see a lot of Conservatives talk this sort of system up and I'm just wondering what other people think.
Last year I thought my kid had his physical prior to football up to date but got a letter a week before the season he couldn't play unless he got a physical. I called all our "insurance provider" clinics and it was oh we can get you in a couple weeks from now so I was panicking. I googled free clinicls and got him in the next day for a physical for fifty bucks. With the amount of deductibles we're seeing nowdays why even have insurance except for covering major ****?? Of course it is all tacked together but a doctor visit if your sick where they just say oh hell you got a viral infection it will go away or a thing like a physical or shots? Why not?
Could the United States have a total free market health care?
No Medicare, no Medicaid, no health insurance companies, no Tricare, etc. Just a pure cash only (or debit/credit card) system.
Do you think that could work?
I see a lot of Conservatives talk this sort of system up and I'm just wondering what other people think.
I don't think so. If something like that existed, few 80 year olds would have any sort of medical insurance, because it's simply not profitable to provide it for them (unless they're wealthy, but that's a very small number of 80 year olds).
You can have some aspects of free market competition in healthcare, but I seriously doubt that it can ever be a true free market system. Even in Singapore and Switzerland, where they don't have state-run exchanges, they force everyone to get insurance and set up health savings accounts - conservatives would flip. That fundamentally points to the fact that this is not a product that can be managed purely in a free market.
Last edited by ambient; 10-24-2013 at 12:33 AM..
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