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And why do you think we're paying so much? Either (a) the insurance companies and health care providers are just price gouging[1], or (b) the people who do pay

And why do you think we're paying so much? Either (a) the insurance companies and health care providers are just price gouging[1], or (b) the people who do pay are having to cover the costs for all those non-payers. In this case, both problems are essentially the fault of the government. Choice (a) only happens in a system (like we currently have in the US) where the government imposes artificial limits on competition in the healthcare industry. Choice (b) currently happens because the government mandates that healthcare providers give care to non-paying patients, in addition to the government-sponsored entitlement programs (which often pay providers far less than the actual costs require). [1] If it's just price gouging, then (in a free market) there would be a huge incentive for someone else to enter the market with lower prices; they'd be able to sweep the market overnight - at least until someone else came along to undercut their prices, and we'd all benefit from paying something closer to actual costs. But in the artificially regulated healthcare system of the US, unfortunately this doesn't happen.

mgbmtl 9y ago
Most other countries do a pretty good job controlling health care prices. The situation in the United-States is appalling. Deregulation sometimes works, but here it clearly fails.
- curiousgeorgio 9y ago
  > Deregulation sometimes works, but here it clearly fails We haven't had a deregulated healthcare industry/market in the United States for a very long time (in fact, "healthcare" as we know it never existed in the US without massive regulation). I'm not sure anyone can make that claim based on real evidence, at least not in the US.
  - mgbmtl 9y ago
    In most western countries, you don't negotiate a hospital bill. Usually you don't get a bill at all. In most Canadian provinces, governments set prices and their only "client" is the provincial government. I think you meant "free market", not "deregulated"? and where supporters of free markets will always push for more deregulation because they'll blame whatever little regulation is in place in order to support their utopia. Heard that before.. all watched over by machines of loving grace.
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]

mgbmtl 9y ago

Most other countries do a pretty good job controlling health care prices. The situation in the United-States is appalling. Deregulation sometimes works, but here it clearly fails.

curiousgeorgio 9y ago
> Deregulation sometimes works, but here it clearly fails We haven't had a deregulated healthcare industry/market in the United States for a very long time (in fact, "healthcare" as we know it never existed in the US without massive regulation). I'm not sure anyone can make that claim based on real evidence, at least not in the US.
- mgbmtl 9y ago
  In most western countries, you don't negotiate a hospital bill. Usually you don't get a bill at all. In most Canadian provinces, governments set prices and their only "client" is the provincial government. I think you meant "free market", not "deregulated"? and where supporters of free markets will always push for more deregulation because they'll blame whatever little regulation is in place in order to support their utopia. Heard that before.. all watched over by machines of loving grace.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]