FIXING HEALTH CARE THE VIKING WAY
I'm madder than King Leonidas of Sparta at a Moveon.org anti-war rally over the current health care debate in America. There is no current issue that interests and infuriates me more, and there is probably no other issue I know more about or have cared about longer than that of health care. I'm sure we've all seen a movie whose plot trips up and starts down the wrong path. You want to yell at the screen. The proper resolution is so obvious, but the director is an idiot and the end of the movie is a complete clusterfuck. This is exactly how I feel about the health care debate in America today.
The U.S. health care system is hurting. It is so bad that some people (mostly smelly hippie types) are talking about drastic changes. many of which involve massive government intervention. The truly tragic thing here is that there is a very easy solution to our problem, and nobody from either party is talking about it openly. Why aren't they talking about the real solution? They aren't talking about it because we have a two party system, and the proper resolution steps on everyone's toes in a big way. So we end up getting disastrous socialized medical plans from the Democrats, and do-nothing plans from the Republicans. Chances are that people on both sides know exactly what the problem is and what must be done to fix it (okay, maybe not some Democrats), but they just can't bring themselves to talk about it honestly.
During a health care discussion on the Arthur's Hall Forum, one of our few (and valued) liberal members called our health care system "capitalism gone crazy". This isn't an uncommon sentiment in some circles. Many are blaming our health care problem on market failure, and suggest profit-free solution run by the government. So stop, collaborate, and listen... because I'm going to cut through this bullshit right now. Ask yourself, what other industry in America other than health care is unaffordable to your average person? Automobiles are not only better, but are more affordable than ever to your average American. Consumer electronics are getting cheaper and better at an exponential rate. Our grocery stores are modern wonders, featuring food from all over the world, all at prices that any American with a job can afford. So why is it that all these market driven capitalistic ventures have delivered so well for consumers while health care has failed? The answer is simple. Real markets correct, they don't fail. Complete failure only happens when the rules a market is governed by are too rigid and don't allow an industry to adapt to the needs of their customers. The problem with health care is not a result of market failure or "capitalism gone crazy"; the problem is that health care isn't capitalistic enough.
The general idea behind capitalism is that people voluntarily trade with others when they are offered a product that they deem worthy of the asking price, simple, right? Damn right it's simple! This is how you buy home electronics, automobiles, and groceries. But you don't buy health care this way, do you? You see, in an effort to make your life more simple, those glorious assholes in your government have decided that your employers, NOT YOU, should be buying YOUR health care. The government gives giant corporations huge tax breaks for offering employer-sponsored health care. They also write all sorts of laws that require insurance companies to cover specific types of health care, even if it doesn't fit their business model or their client's needs. How can this possibly be a bad thing? If you are covered by insurance, your employer is paying the bill, and your coverage is more complete than ever... right? Yes, but health care is suffering because prices are out of control, not because it sucks for those who have it. The government is taking away your ability to make choices about your own health care, and driving up prices because the entire market is uncompetitive. Most people are completely detached and unaware of their true health care costs. Can we be surprised if they are less than thrifty with someone else's money?
The great economist Milton Friedman made the observation that people are the most careful when they are buying something for themselves with their own money. Who can argue with that? He also said that people are least careful with money when they are spending someone else's money on themselves. Anyone who has ever bought a filet mignon at an expensive restaurant on a corporate AMEX card knows exactly what I'm talking about. So if health care costs are out of control, why is the government insisting on a system that completely detaches consumers from their own health care costs? We should be buying our health care just like we buy everything else in our lives. This would spur competition, increasing the variety of insurance products available to us, and bring down prices.
Can we be surprised that health care is unaffordable in these conditions? With a free-market plan poor people could buy cheap no frills plans, and rich people could buy mega-plans that cover everything including crazy shit like acupuncture and psychotherapy. The health care system would end up looking a lot like the automotive industry. Sure, the rich would be driving Benzes, but the poor would have their Kias that get them from point A to point B at a rock-bottom price. All the while, people would be more aware of how much everything costs, from doctors visits to prescriptions because they would be making the buying decisions and handing over their own money for the services they chose to purchase.
I sure hope I've explained to your satisfaction how it isn't the fault of capitalism that our health care system is less than healthy. The fault of course lies in the fact that health care isn't capitalistic enough in America. Who is to blame for this? Virtually everyone living in America! You see, Democrats are at fault because they don't generally believe in markets and are constantly over-regulating industries. This adds to costs, and takes away our freedoms to purchase the products we want. They also block tort reform because they are in the back pockets of those depraved personal injury trial lawyer associations. This is a huge issue. Anyone who tells you that mega million dollar malpractice lawsuits, and the six figure insurance bills your doctor has to pay are not a factor in health care costs is drinking some fucked up Jonestown flavored Cool-Aid. Republicans aren't fixing the system either though. Republicans are supported by the insurance companies who are happy with the status quo. Just another case of business being reflexively conservative. They too are afraid of a brave new world of competition and freedom in health care.
It isn't just Republicans and Democrats who are at fault here though. Possibly the biggest roadblock to a health care solution is YOU. Politicians always talk about the 40 million or so people who are uninsured in America, and while 40 million is a big-ass number, there are still over 300 million people in America. That means that many Americans are sitting fat and happy with their employer-sponsored programs that leave them out of the buying process. The real problem is that the vast majority of voting Americans are perfectly happy with their own health care situation, and would find the extra responsibility of buying their own a nuisance. Politicians know this, and they know it would be electoral suicide to bring true free market reform to health care. As Americans, we need to be willing to change to solve the problem. We not only need to be willing to purchase our own care, but we should be exited to take more responsibility over our lives, and we should appreciate the freedom it would give us.
The idea that we should be willing to purchase our own health care brings me to my final problem with the current health care situation. Remember that 40 million number? Well, that number is absolute bullshit. Sure, there are 40-plus million people in America without health insurance. But that doesn't mean that none of those 40-million can afford it. All across America there are young (and not so young) adults who choose not to buy even the most basic high-deductible plans because they are healthy and too lazy to bother. These people are making a disastrous financial mistake! If they ever do get hurt, they could end up costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars, go bankrupt, or spend the rest of their lives in debt. There is no excuse for those who can afford a catastrophic plan not to buy insurance. It is also true that a massive influx of these young healthy people into the system would help distribute costs a bit and decrease everyone's health care insurance bills.
Well there you have it, my rant on the health care issue. I know there are liberals out there who will complain about this system still not covering the very poor, the irresponsible, or the jobless. Damn right it doesn't! But then again, a free market system with reduced costs would make it much easier for community groups or local government to cover the very poor, wouldn't it? When you look at how simple and effective free-market reforms could be, it becomes very apparent that socialized medicine is only a crass power-play designed to make more people dependent on the government.
These next few years are going to be vital. America is quite likely to pass some sort of federal health care plan that will cost you more in taxes, and take away more of your economic freedoms. It is important that people like you get involved in this issue. Talk about free-market ideas with your friends, and make sure your congressman knows that you don't want the government interfering more in your life. In order for America to remain the most free nation in the world, we need to take a firm stand on issues like this. We need to fight both parties, and we need to fight our own natural lazy instincts. When we are confronted with the option of lazy dependency and freedom, we need to choose freedom every time. |
