The Case for Bigger Government by Jeffrey D. Sachs

[A_Wanderer]

I mean that you seemed to be saying that it was the fact there were competing medical companies that make all these products expensive, that consolidating the services to a few or single channel would solve the problems.

 

[mobvok]

I've read a very interesting point that this financial crisis directly attacks one of the dogmas of the free marketeers: that we don't need government regulation because private sector entities (credit rating agencies like Moody's for example) can compete on the basis of their reputation for oversight.

Oops.

 

[BVS]

I mean that you seemed to be saying that it was the fact there were competing medical companies that make all these products expensive, that consolidating the services to a few or single channel would solve the problems.

No, that's not what I'm saying at all. In fact it's not the medical companies that are the biggest factors in driving up these costs(although they are a part). The example I gave before, that device has 5 competing companies. The list price is all the same, because the cost is mostly defined by the insurance companies and hospitals. The competetion is based on efficacy, time constraints, comfort, etc(for this example). So in a way the fact that the cost is all the same makes the competion a little more honest, but the cost itself is ridiculous...

The problem once again is that there are far too many cooks in the kitchen. The insurance companies are driving up the costs upfront, then driving them up indirectly by the extra costs they put on hospitals and doctors, the hospitals themselves drive up the costs, and none of this includes the actual r&d by the actuall supply company.

 

[A_Wanderer]

It does seem absurd that the per capita state spending on healthcare is higher in the USA than other first world nations.

 

[Liesje]

I hear you. The way I see it, these days all you're really "getting" from health insurance is financial saftey net if you're hit with some catastrophic illness that costs you substantially more than the deductible.

Yes, that is exactly it. And actually when I went to Africa I paid for another type of insurance that would guarantee I could be removed from the country and treated appropriately. But yes, as far as my insurance goes, you are right. The only person I know who is singing its praises just had a baby.

Also I can't stand that dental is separate. Most dental procedures are just as expensive as any other health care procedure. I had to have a tooth fixed and it cost me $500 out of pocket WITH "good" coverage. I have TMJ that has gotten consistently worse over the past year and a half and can't afford the bite plate which would be the first step in managing it because it would cost me several hundred out of my pocket. Also the co-pays are ridiculous b/c they often still charge. I paid a $15 co-pay the time my Dr. was on vacation and I needed antibiotics, but I still had to pay an additional $175 later on. It gets added to the deductible, but again, you never reach the deductible unless you are in a car accident or something. So far, the only thing my insurance has been good for is $10 Dr. visits and $10 prescription. But, I can afford an annual physical on my own, and my prescription is only $20 without insurance. So I'm paying hundreds extra a month for nothing unless I need some invasive surgery...