Quote:
Originally Posted by Superman
I see that the threads so far, suggest that we already have socialized medicine of sorts. We all pay for it. "Single payer" for the debts that insurance companies and Medicare won't pay for. So it seems not to be a question of whether we pay for it but rather, how. Medical insurance companies and Medicare dictate certain prices. Or at least, bargain for them with some economic clout. In an ocean of costs that are inflated to cover the 'free' medical care that nobody pays for. Ultimately, we pay for that. Do I have that right?
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In my opinion you have it precisely correct. All the care that is given to patients is paid for. Either the patient (or his insurer) pays directly, or the provider pays for it. of course if the provider pays for it, the cost gets passed along to all patients or insurers who do pay fee for services.
This seems to me to be both the problem and solution to our health care system. Those with enough money to pay for insurance coverage or to pay out of pocket already cover the expenses of those who can't pay. This system is hugely inefficient. Therefore the solution seems obvious to me. We should create a system that efficiently pays for all medical expenses in a reasonable and predictable manner with accountability to the provider and patient and cut out the middle man. If that's what single payer looks like, there are ways to implement it in a market-based solution. Single payer doesn't have to mean socialized medicine.
The quid pro quo, though, needs to be that those who are currently subsidizing health care for those who don't pay should not be called to pay more with my hypothetical new system. We're already paying for the care that's being given. Our bills shouldn't go up when we create an efficient system to pay for everyone's bills. The medical expense should remain constant and the reimbursement expense should go down. There should be an equal offset for people who currently pay into the system.