[quote=EconProf]My son is a single, healthy 30-year old. He has always bought inexpensive health insurance on his own with a high deductible. He pays the first $2000 per year of any medical expenses and 20% of anything over that amount. Very cheap because at his age the insurance company has little risk and competition with other insurance companies forces them to price it low. Also, he shops around when he needs medical service, offers to pay up front, and gets huge discounts when the provider realizes they don’t have to deal with insurance paperwork. In other words, he is dealing in the private sector he has found the right solution for his situation, and puts no burden on others to subsidize his medical needs.
Now, under Obamacare, he will see his costs double or triple because he will have to pay for older, less healthy people. The government is imposing a one-size-fits-all plan upon us rather than letting us pick and chose what best fits our situation. The result is hidden subsidies to some and hidden costs to others. For all you Piggs under 40, and especially those under 30, the coming rate shock will be a wakeup call. Interestingly, the under 30 year olds were those who most likely voted for Obama.[/quote]
Your son is lucky that he’s healthy and is able to get cheap insurance. For many his age, even though they’ve lived healthy lifestyles, this is not possible because they were some of the unlucky ones. Cancer, MS, various genetic diseases and abnormalities, etc. are indiscriminate. I know a handful of VERY health conscious people who had life-threatening medical issues at fairly young ages (cancer, strokes, heart attacks). It was 100% random and had nothing at all to do with their lifestyles.
While your son might be subsidizing the older today, in a couple of short decades, younger people will be subsidizing him. As OCR noted, this is the very essence of insurance. If you want a system that is completely without subsidies, there would be no insurance market at all.
Also, I’ve often gone as a cash patient, and was never able to get the same discount that my insurer was able to get. Many doctors won’t offer a cash discount under any circumstances.
