I don’t like everything in the bill but I think it is better than the current system. The current system is broken. You don’t have to buy health insurance but the hospital can’t kick you out if you can’t pay. Since as a society we have decided that on humanitarian ground that we can’t leave people die untreated, we might as well pay for the cost of prevention (or force people to) which is usually less expensive.
However I think the items where the real savings can be found are ignored.
1. Limit to medical malpractice lawsuit–driven up cost with high medical practice insurance and doctors performing unecessary tests.
2. Over priced drugs in the US–why are Europeans/Japanese/Canadians negotiate with the drug companies and they pay about half (of what we are paying) for the same drugs. The argument is usually some thing like we are getting safer drugs or some body has to pay for the R&D cost. Why do Americans have to shoulder all of the R&D cost?
3. Doctors getting pay more for uncalled for procedures-if doctors get paid $2000 for a natural birth (1 hr of work) and $6000 for a c-section (1.5 hr of work). Guess which one they like to do. Doctors are human and money will influence their decision. They will make up some reasons why they have to perform c-sections (perhaps unconciously). Example, a friend of mine used to hate people who smokes. But now he is working for Phillips Morris he fervently argues that it is people’s freedom to choose.
4. Over medication–We must admit that Americans eat to much and don’t exercise. I see people taking medications (hyper tension, cholesterol,…) that they could eliminate by changing their lifestyles. What if you make them pay higher copayment?
