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I'll take your word that Afordable Care Act is eroding "quality health insurance plans". I have seen the rates, and they all seem outrageously expensive. What

I'll take your word that Afordable Care Act is eroding "quality health insurance plans". I have seen the rates, and they all seem outrageously expensive. What I have seen is Insurance companies just finding loopholes, and doing what "for profit" insurance companies do; make money. I don't know how the Affordable Care Act is making things worse. The insurance companies were greedy, selfish bastards before the act? I don't think health care would have magically gotten better with time? As to Obamacare. No it's not what he originally wanted. Politically, he needed to amend his original bill. At the time the Rebublicans pressure was palatable. He knew it was this, or nothing. An election was comming up, and he knew he wouldn't be able to get anything through next congress. I'm not a fan of Obamacare, but we were cornered. It was this, or nothing. I do believe we need to document our complaints about individual Insurance companies, but that will probally never happen. Why--because it's one of those subjects we don't like to think about. I don't have an answer to the problem of horrid insurance companies, and medical institutions/individuals that overcharge us. I would be the first one pulling the cord on Obamacare if someone could get a better alternative through congress. I don't see that day comming soon. (To the Doctors/Institutions that don't abuse their power; you have my highest regard. To the ones that accept a medi-cal patient every blue moon; you have my highest regard. To the ones who are just in it for the money, or blame everything on the Insurance companies; some of us see right through the lie.)

anonymous854 11y ago
According to this article, if you look at the prices insurance companies are actually paying (after negotiations), they're still way higher than in other countries: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2013/03/26/21-graphs-that-show-americas-health-care-prices-are-ludicrous/ http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2013/03/26/21... This suggests that the providers of medical care are actually the biggest culprits for our out of control healthcare spending and lack of access to affordable care, not the insurance companies, yet your post only passingly blames the former.
- ddingus 11y ago
  It's both. Private insurers need to make a profit for distributing risk, and due to there being a lot of them, those risk distributions are much smaller than they could be. Adding a public, non profit "cost + x percent" type plan, say Medicare part E for everyone, would very significantly improve this, particularly if it were allowed to bargain for bulk pricing. (that we don't allow Medicare to do this is just nuts!) Private entities also need to make a profit, and there is no meaningful check on this at present. A similar, public non-profit type delivery entity would reduce prices on most common treatments and maintenance activities. Those wanting to profit on primary care could add value, such as home service, etc... and do it that way, rather than mark up common, mass delivered treatments. Secondly, niche specialization could remain high profit, high value add and more people would be able to afford those services. Doing something like this would carve a big hole into much of the profit inherent in the US system, which would bring our national costs closer to those found in the rest of the world, while leaving high profit, high value on the table. Some of us would not be able to afford those high value offerings, but would definitely benefit from much improved access to preventative and or more common, well proven health care. This is all a compromise. The US could make much better choices and improve both access and outcomes.

anonymous854 11y ago

According to this article, if you look at the prices insurance companies are actually paying (after negotiations), they're still way higher than in other countries: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2013/03/26/21-graphs-that-show-americas-health-care-prices-are-ludicrous/ http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2013/03/26/21... This suggests that the providers of medical care are actually the biggest culprits for our out of control healthcare spending and lack of access to affordable care, not the insurance companies, yet your post only passingly blames the former.

ddingus 11y ago
It's both. Private insurers need to make a profit for distributing risk, and due to there being a lot of them, those risk distributions are much smaller than they could be. Adding a public, non profit "cost + x percent" type plan, say Medicare part E for everyone, would very significantly improve this, particularly if it were allowed to bargain for bulk pricing. (that we don't allow Medicare to do this is just nuts!) Private entities also need to make a profit, and there is no meaningful check on this at present. A similar, public non-profit type delivery entity would reduce prices on most common treatments and maintenance activities. Those wanting to profit on primary care could add value, such as home service, etc... and do it that way, rather than mark up common, mass delivered treatments. Secondly, niche specialization could remain high profit, high value add and more people would be able to afford those services. Doing something like this would carve a big hole into much of the profit inherent in the US system, which would bring our national costs closer to those found in the rest of the world, while leaving high profit, high value on the table. Some of us would not be able to afford those high value offerings, but would definitely benefit from much improved access to preventative and or more common, well proven health care. This is all a compromise. The US could make much better choices and improve both access and outcomes.