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Somehow, the current US health system is the most expensive on the planet [0], for outcomes that aren't better (and in some cases worse) than the rest of the de

Somehow, the current US health system is the most expensive on the planet [0], for outcomes that aren't better (and in some cases worse) than the rest of the developed world. Have you considered the possibility of waste, fraud, and abuse being high in the present system? [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_total_health_expenditure_per_capita https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_total_hea...

macinjosh 7y ago
I am not defending the current system. My point is that insurance and single-payer are not the only 2 possible models. A freer healthcare market, not encumbered by the inefficiencies of insurance, could actually put market forces to work in the industry. If prices were known prior to service competition would begin and people could vote with their feet. Right now we have a overly consolidated monstrosity in the insurance and drug industries sucking profits out of the public, and these guys just want to switch it out for a different monstrosity.
macinjosh 7y ago
> Somehow, the current US health system is the most expensive on the planet You know why? Because we pay for most of the R&D, done by industry, that the rest of the world benefits from. For example, other developed nations like Canada have been able to benefit from new drugs invented in America's more capitalist system by restricting prices in their country even though we don't.
- pjmorris 7y ago
  US pharmaceutical company R&D spending is ~80B per year [0]. Healthcare spending is ~3.6T, making pharma R&D about 2% of overall healthcare spending. Based on the above back-of-the-napkin math, I'm inclined to think pharma R&D isn't really the main factor. What is your support for believing it is the case? [0] https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/phrma-research-development-spending-industry-report/529943/ https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/phrma-research-developmen...

macinjosh 7y ago

I am not defending the current system. My point is that insurance and single-payer are not the only 2 possible models. A freer healthcare market, not encumbered by the inefficiencies of insurance, could actually put market forces to work in the industry. If prices were known prior to service competition would begin and people could vote with their feet. Right now we have a overly consolidated monstrosity in the insurance and drug industries sucking profits out of the public, and these guys just want to switch it out for a different monstrosity.

macinjosh 7y ago

> Somehow, the current US health system is the most expensive on the planet You know why? Because we pay for most of the R&D, done by industry, that the rest of the world benefits from. For example, other developed nations like Canada have been able to benefit from new drugs invented in America's more capitalist system by restricting prices in their country even though we don't.

pjmorris 7y ago
US pharmaceutical company R&D spending is ~80B per year [0]. Healthcare spending is ~3.6T, making pharma R&D about 2% of overall healthcare spending. Based on the above back-of-the-napkin math, I'm inclined to think pharma R&D isn't really the main factor. What is your support for believing it is the case? [0] https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/phrma-research-development-spending-industry-report/529943/ https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/phrma-research-developmen...