Kid In A Candy Store (Single-Payer)

[MichaelLWagner]

All other Developed Countries have Single-Payer Health Insurance!!!


“If the universal coverage and single-payer features of the Canadian system were applied in the United States, the savings in administrative cost alone would be more than enough to finance insurance coverage for the millions of Americans who are currently uninsured.”

(Canadian Health Insurance: Lessons for the United States / Government Accountability Office (GAO))



"... Massachusetts ... require all residents to buy health insurance."

"Just a year after ... The New York Times reported, state insurers were already jacking up rates to twice the national average."

(Universal coverage? First, look at the disaster in Massachusetts / Washington Examiner)



"Nearly two out of three bankruptcies stem from medical bills, and even people with health insurance face financial disaster if they experience a serious illness, a new study shows."

(Medical Bills Cause Most Bankruptcies / NY Times)



"... Angell attacks major pharmaceutical industry -- whose top ten companies make more in profits than the rest of the Fortune 500 combined..."

(The Truth About Drug Companies / Mother Jones)



"Wall Street analysts described the $80 billion giveback as a "good deal" for pharmaceutical companies ..."

"'It will ultimately discourage patients ... from switching to generics ...'"

(For Drug Makers, Concessions Have Bright Side / Wall Street Journal)

[MichaelLWagner]

Rather...--virtually all other developed countries have Single-Payer--the Swiss and the Danes have a single-universal-rate for everyone...

A $50 deductible after an annual check-up is just what the doctor ordered. Paid over ten years that's about $1 per month...

That's the thing—Massachusetts-Mandatory-Coverage translates into both higher rates & longer waits!!!

[MichaelLWagner]

"... Obama promised that he would freeze out the lobbyists ... "

The Truth = "... a lobbying feeding frenzy, with health insurers, drug makers and employers all poised to benefit ..."

"Requiring insurers to charge one price and accept all comers would boost prices ..."

+ Insurers, drug makers poised to profit from Obama health plan / Washington Examiner

( http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/Insurers-drug-makers-poised-to-profit-from-Obama-health-plan_02_25-40257852.html )



"Many experts say the high-risk pools already available in 35 states are plagued by high costs and inadequate coverage."

"Premiums paid by individuals would be supplemented by $5 billion in government subsidies."

+ Pre-existing Conditions and Insurance Pools / NY Times

( http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/24/pre-existing-conditions-and-insurance-pools/ )



"The Los Angeles Times has a two-part series on patients who have sued their insurers for denying potentially life-saving transplants."

+ Patients Sue Insurers For Denying Transplants / Kaiser

( http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Daily-Reports/2009/October/09/Denials.aspx )



"Tales of frustration with insurers abound. In an Internet survey that included 1,000 consumers, nearly one out of four said he or she had had a legitimate claim denied by their health insurance ..."

+Tips to effectively battle your insurance company / CNN

( http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/07/19/patient.insurance/index.html )

[MichaelLWagner]

...Offering people the choice of a private policy is supposed to undercut Single-Payer, but there's too many people in the USA for that to matter...

...Another argument: Who'd want to spend 8 years + residency to become a Doctor, only to make peanuts, where others are making much more with much less effort...

And so..., if you want to pay for an expensive Private Policy--well, fine--but, on the other hand, implement Single-Payer with a $50 deductible, then the Kid In The Candy Store could afford to pay a Doctor, say, $175K, plus the deductible would keep the work load lighter...