[quote=Jazzman]^^^The calculations and comparisons are going to difficult, but the money to pay for health care still has to come from the same place, whether it’s taxes or insurance premiums, so I don’t see how costs per capita increase under a universal system.[/quote]
Exactly. We are **already** paying for the most expensive healthcare. If we go to a single-payer system, costs (whether paid via taxes or premiums) will likely go down, not up.
Again, we **already** pay for the most expensive patients in this country. The most expensive patients are covered by Medicare and Medicaid, while the most profitable are left to the private market — the privatization of profits, and the socialization of losses. The cost per capita in a “Medicare for all” scenario would go down drastically, relative to what we spend now, if we could incorporate the younger, healthier patients. We would probably be in line with other developed nations, if not better.
As I’ve said before many times, it doesn’t matter if your money is going to a public agency or a private agency, what matters is the value you get for the money. Studies have shown that, contrary to popular belief, public agencies tend to give more value for the money.
