3 ms·

If you just apply common sense and think about it - it makes sense :) Insurance companies are not interested in lowering prices. They are interested in: 1) Not

If you just apply common sense and think about it - it makes sense :) Insurance companies are not interested in lowering prices. They are interested in: 1) Not spending more than they captured in premiums in current year. 2) Increase of cash flow. Once you combine these two you realize what insurance companies are looking to get steady increase in medical costs over long time. And medical service providers are playing along.

sytelus 8y ago
No, common sense says people and companies will chose providers with best coverage at lowest price. Insurance companies does have huge incentive to lower the premiums. I think the article is simply not well researched. The guy thinks of insurance company as middlemen who negotiates for him. That’s true only to an extent because insurance company does have to build a network. If they miss out on big players like NYU then their lower premiums are pointless. The most flexibility customers want is to chose any doctor they want. Hospitals have taken advantage of this since long and negotiatons are not simple for insurance company to build their network. Medicare is different beast.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- dorchadas 8y ago
  Yeah, but when you're locked in to only choosing whichever your company provides you there's not much opportunity to switch, so there's really nothing you can do.
  - HedgeSparrow 8y ago
    Exactly. > No, common sense says people and companies will chose providers with best coverage at lowest price. This is basically the argument Comcast uses to justify their de facto monopoly. In Comcast's case, their "competition" doesn't even exist on the same scale (which is hardly competition). If the market were really a "free market" there would be viable options between insurance companies for the insured. Sure you can pick your doctor, and to some extent your plan, but does your company offer you multiple choices for where your health benefits come from?
Steel_Phoenix 8y ago
I would add: 3) Rising medical prices make it harder for people to justify going under-insured.

sytelus 8y ago

No, common sense says people and companies will chose providers with best coverage at lowest price. Insurance companies does have huge incentive to lower the premiums. I think the article is simply not well researched. The guy thinks of insurance company as middlemen who negotiates for him. That’s true only to an extent because insurance company does have to build a network. If they miss out on big players like NYU then their lower premiums are pointless. The most flexibility customers want is to chose any doctor they want. Hospitals have taken advantage of this since long and negotiatons are not simple for insurance company to build their network. Medicare is different beast.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
dorchadas 8y ago
Yeah, but when you're locked in to only choosing whichever your company provides you there's not much opportunity to switch, so there's really nothing you can do.
- HedgeSparrow 8y ago
  Exactly. > No, common sense says people and companies will chose providers with best coverage at lowest price. This is basically the argument Comcast uses to justify their de facto monopoly. In Comcast's case, their "competition" doesn't even exist on the same scale (which is hardly competition). If the market were really a "free market" there would be viable options between insurance companies for the insured. Sure you can pick your doctor, and to some extent your plan, but does your company offer you multiple choices for where your health benefits come from?

Steel_Phoenix 8y ago

I would add: 3) Rising medical prices make it harder for people to justify going under-insured.