Reforming Healthcare: a Self-Serving Endeavor

President Reagan said the most terrifying words in the English language are “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.” Big government really is that ineffective, and one could probably win that argument in court.

The President and many in congress have demonstrated they are willing to pass a socialized healthcare bill, contrary to the will of the people. Every plan we’ve seen thwarts liberty, and does more to secure the federal government’s control over the lives of Americans than safety-net our health or bolster the financial security of our nation.

Healthcare costs are high in part because the government caps what it will pay doctors for Medicare/Medicaid, compelling doctors to charge non-Medicare/Medicaid patients a higher price for care to make up for their loss, a practice known as cost-shifting. Government interference always forces companies to jump through additional hoops to provide services for consumers.

And it likely will result in rationing of healthcare because it will dramatically increase demand for healthcare (millions of extra, often unnecessary patients) without increasing the supply of healthcare, i.e. doctors and nurses. Of course we want people to have access to the care they need. Providing incentives for more people to enter and remain in the medical field can increase the supply of healthcare. But the problem didn’t surface overnight and it won’t be fixed tomorrow.

One item that has taken a long time to get bipartisan approval is tort reform. Doctors pay malpractice insurance premiums from $25,000 annually for an ear nose and throat specialist, to $100,000 - $200,000 annually for on Ob-Gyn in some states, more than most of us make in a year. Most doctors do not get hospital privileges without proof of coverage. As in any other business, operating costs are necessarily passed down to the customer, or patient. Is it any wonder why we pay so much? And since so much of the political arena is made up of attorneys (including the President) the machine has traditionally protected itself and its friends by defeating changes that would have lowered their winnings from excessive jury awards.

It’s easy to see why it’s been difficult to get anywhere on this common-sense issue. Congress needs to enact tort reform to lessen doctors’ liability to bring down the cost of medical malpractice insurance. Of course doctors should still be liable for their part in traumatic mistakes, but let’s allow them to pay less for premiums when possible, and let them do their jobs and stop practicing defensive medicine. Over time, we should see real savings.

The plans for a government overhaul of healthcare would increase government power and influence for the purpose of, well…increasing government power and influence. This is the same congress that devalued our currency resulting in $4/gallon gas; that oversaw Fannie Mae (broke) and Freddie Mac (broke), the Social Security system (projected broke) and Medicare (pays out an estimated $60 billion in fraud, annually).

Why would we utilize anything specializing in failure? Should the bankrupt investor handle your money? Should you trust the ski instructor in a body cast? Would you bet on a horse with three legs?

We were told that healthcare needs reform because so many people are without health insurance coverage. Yet this overhaul still leaves 17-30 million without coverage after ten years, while adding hundreds of billions to the deficit. Simply put, the federal government is the best at making things worse. It fails even by it’s own count.


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