A Few (More) Thoughts on Health Care
Submitted by Aguanomics Blog
I posted on this a few months ago, but some people didn’t appear to notice.
(That’s why we still have a broken system… 
During the interim, I:
- experienced the Dutch healthcare system: Yes, single-payer mandatory universal coverage with competing private health plans works.
- reflected on our system: We are not just afraid of dying in hospitals, we are afraid of going bankrupt.
- experienced our system: My insurer put a mediator on the phone to help me get an appointment; this system is BEYOND complex if you need someone to represent you for a doctor’s appointment!
- got good care from the doctors. Unfortunately, the situation with medical records, appointments, payments, etc. is a complete disaster!
- chatted with a very cute, passionate and ill-informed CALPIRG organizer. (Never knock on a PhD’s door and ask them to sign a policy document!) I told her I was unwilling to consider governmetn insurance before we restored decision-making to patients.
Here are my additional thoughts:
- If we do not go to single-payer (unlikely), we are going to have competing insurance companies.
- Since private companies do not compete that much right now, we need more competition.
- People are more afraid of losing their jobs because they may lose coverage.
- We can fix both (2) and (3) by separating insurance from work — your salary goes up, but you have to buy insurance.
So, I’ve just found more reasons to support my initial idea: get employers OUT of the healthcare loop! (My preference is similar to a Dutch system — see above — that works better.)
[For more fun, read The Econmist's view or watch Barney Frank slapdown an Obama-as-Nazi protester.]
Bottom Line: We will not (or cannot) fix our healthcare system without strengthening patient-doctor relationships. Single payer would do that, but it can also work with multiple payers (gov’t or private insurance) and providers, e.g., as car insurance does.
We want to hear your thoughts on conservation so we make this a better world. Register on Conservation Blog now and get published within minutes. Before posting, it is recommended that you review our posting guidelines.
