“It’s a duty of the next Congress to reform America’s health care system,” declared Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. While I agree reform is needed, why do I have a gnawing feeling in my stomach that the kind of reform the Democrats are thinking of is not what real reform would be but just more of the same…government interference in the healthcare market? Sen. Baucus recently released a blue-print for healthcare “reform” entitled a “Call to Action: Health Reform 2009.” It can be found here.
First, let me get something out up front…you will pay for your healthcare no matter what Congress decides reform is. What you need to focus on during this coming debate in the 111th Congress is this…who has the purchasing power? Being able to answer that question will decide what your health plan will cover. What do I mean?
If you get your health insurance from your employer, you are essentially paying for it but your employer purchases it. When you joined your company you were offered, instead of a higher salary, a health insurance benefit instead. The connection between employers and health insurance got started in the 1940s when wage and price controls prevented employers from attracting new workers with higher pay. So, employers offered benefits instead. If you have employer-sponsored health insurance, the employer decides what the health plan looks like, not you, because the employer has the purchasing power.
If you succumb to the siren song of “universal” or “socialized” or “single-payer” or “guaranteed” healthcare, rest assured all the descriptions mean government-run healthcare. You will pay for it through higher taxes while bureaucrats and politicians will decide what your plan will look like because they have the purchasing power. Big-spending liberals in Congress have pushed for government-controlled healthcare for years and like pincers, they are slowly succeeding. How? By covering children in low-income families on one end through Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and seniors through Medicare on the other end.
This coming year, watch politicians try to expand coverage in these government-controlled plans by allowing children from middle-class families to be eligible for SCHIP and allowing individuals 55 or older to buy into Medicare. Eventually, true private insurance and competition that encourages excellence in healthcare will be forced out. Of course, Medicare is going broke and Medicaid and SCHIP wreck havoc with state budgets while our illustrious politicians want to make the programs even bigger…but I digress.
True reform would put patients in the driver’s seat and give them the purchasing power. Tax-deferred Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and a corresponding high-deductible insurance plan…both coupled with a tax credit is one way to do this. Like an IRA, the HSA belongs to you and can grow in value. Plus, when you leave an employer, it stays with you. Because you have the purchasing power, you decide on the doctor you want and the type of catastrophic health insurance you purchase. You can read about HSAs here.
Now back to the Baucus outline on health reform. Stuart Butler, Vice-President for Domestic and Economic Policy Studies at the Heritage Foundation, declared the Baucus White Paper was a “starting point for serious discussion” because it “puts some flesh on the bones of ideas that have been circulating in policy circles” and “indicates a more open conversation about health reform than occurred during the last major effort at reform, which was characterized by the secretive health task force of the Clinton Administration.” But he also sees warning signs in the outline. You can read his comments here.
Amy Menefee of the Galen Institute discusses that the Baucus plan mandates that individuals purchase health insurance and they will be fined if they do not purchase one, a clear loss of freedom. Furthermore, how will that mandate be enforced? You can read her article here.
In fact, Massachusetts has implemented a similar plan and it has been far more expensive then originally touted and far more problematic. Some would say it is a complete failure. You can read about it here.
Whether true health reform occurs this year remains to be seen. Much will depend on the economy and frankly, the citizens of the United States. They will need to decide if they will give up freedom, choice, and quality for a guaranteed government-run health plan or if they will fight for liberty and get the power to make their own healthcare decisions.
Filed under: Healthcare
“Eventually, true private insurance and competition that encourages excellence in healthcare will be forced out.”
I’m confused… private insurance and competition has not encouraged excellence in healthcare! Insurance premiums have skyrocketed and covers less and less. Doc have to charge more and more. Too many folks don’t have any insurance that they can afford and are suffering to dying everyday ’cause they can’t afford to get meds or go to the doc. Should excellent healthcare only be provided if you can afford it? Should you only have a fire department if you can afford it? Should you only have safe roads, bridges, mass transportation, education, food & water, places to live, fair market practices, etc. only if you can afford it?
Maybe we should get rid of health insurance industry all together. This industry and work force could be transitioned for more constructive productiveness, instead of imploding the health care system…not to mention the manipulations of the pharmaceutical industry!
Tax dollars need to be fairly collected and spent but spent wisely/preventatively in sustainable, innovative infra structures that benefit the humane rights of society/environment, saving money in the long run. Elective goods and services should be open to competition and affordability. We need to take a serious scientific look at programs/systems that work and refine w/efficient timely oversite, what doesn’t. True reform can only take place when we educate all with critical thinking skills, and transparency on what works, what doesn’t and updates on win/win progressive solutions…instead of political myths, then the citizen is in the driver’s seat.
Just imagine the things we could innovate and tackle if we all have access to quality education and healthcare in place!
The point is we dont really have a free market in healthcare. Because the employee (or patient) has no real skin in the game. They are not making the decisions on their plans for the most part.
Using HSAs with a catastrophic insurance plan for the unexpected expenses would help. After all, you dont buy car insurance to change the oil in your car, you buy it for accidents.
I hope you are not arguing for MORE government intervention in healthcare or education. We have all seen the results of that unfortunately and it is not pretty.
The states with the most government regulation — community rating, mandated benefits, etc, have the highest premium costs.
As for education…we have spend BILLIONS for “quality education” and have little to show for it. Washington DC spends more per pupil and still has one of the worst school systems in the US.
Health insurance is not a right, it is a responsibility.
As a former federal employee I can tell you that anything in which the government is involved is inefficient, costly, and serves to benefit those in control rather than the intended.
One need only consider the enormous waste and fraud that occurs under the Medicare and Medicaid programs as well as their never-ending regulatory changes which are always confusing, challenged, and add extremely costly burdens to both the taxpayer and the medical community.
We need to get the federal government completely out of the health care system as the first and foremost “reform” of health care. Instead, with Obama and the Democrats controlling Congress you can be sure the federal government’s involvement will increaase if not completely take over the health care system.
Individuals ought to be able to purchase a health insurance policy that covers only what they expect to have to use with a choice of deductibles if not covered under an employer health insurance plan. They should be rewarded for taking control of their health either through lower premiums or a tax credit.
why don’t you think we deserve a health care plan as good as congress and federal employees? It is affordable and works well! We need and should have the same!!!
JK
tell me who pays for Congress, and all federal employees? Is it not the taxpayers. And what happens when more taxes are taken out of their pockets? Be careful what you wish for as more gov means less freedom and more and more taxes to control your life.
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Thanks very much for your interesting post. Will be back in the future.