> The free market offers no incentive to give health services to people who [...] don't know that these services will reduce hospitalization by 33% and costs by

> The free market offers no incentive to give health services to people who [...] don't know that these services will reduce hospitalization by 33% and costs by 22%. Your argument proves too much. You might want to think through the logic in some other area of life. Maybe gas prices at the pump, or candy prices at the supermarket counter. Cheaper and better comparable products DO tend to win over time, do they not? If X is 22% cheaper (while being better as well) than Y, the people who buy a LOT of this good, whatever it is, have a HUGE incentive to switch. In the case of health care, the big movers would be (a) health insurance companies, (b) other companies that offer health coverage to their employees. Additionally, of those who buy health coverage or health care directly as individuals there are bound to be some customers who are unusually price sensitive or unusually anal about doing price comparisons. On the margin, THOSE people will switch, and their friends who look to them for guidance will also switch. Just that movement alone might put a company out of business and thereby protect everyone else too, but you also have to think about natural churn. Even if existing customers and existing big companies and existing insurers are all too lazy to switch, as NEW companies and individuals look for their FIRST contract, they'll do a comparison and see that 22% savings. Last but not least, ignorance is somewhat curable. When X is 22% cheaper to provide (while also better) than Y, X can sell the service for less AND have a higher profit margin...and will use some of those profits (or expected profits) to ADVERTISE. They can TELL the people who "don't know" the stuff that they need to know. I recommend putting up billboards near the competing hospitals. :-)