> So while you're claiming that the author can't use America as a free-market example to bash on, that's not the real point. I'm claiming there's problems with

> So while you're claiming that the author can't use America as a free-market example to bash on, that's not the real point. I'm claiming there's problems with the American system that everyone, regardless of party or political affiliation, can agree with. I'm further claiming that they have fairly simple fixes that would reduce cost and increase quality. That means healthier people with more options. Here's one such way: Tax-advantaged health insurance is one reason the system is so expensive - frequently, all health care purchases are routed through insurance if a person can afford health insurance. That means there's these huge administrative costs and conflicts over treatments. There'd be lots of ways of addressing it: You could gradually remove the tax break on it, you could give everyone the option to receive any of their benefits in cash tax-free instead of the tax-free benefit, you could allow people to deduct all health and medical spending regardless of insurance. I don't know where those three ways of changing things would fall in the political continuum, but one increases taxes, one lowers taxes, and one keeps the tax yields about the same while reducing the reliance on the inefficient insurance system with its associated bureaucracy. > The general debate out there is that a lot of people are saying "we don't want socialism" and "the free-market is more effective" while refering to the American system. Yes, I'm intentionally sidestepping that debate, pointing out three issues that are not backed by either party, that everyone can agree on. We can fix those and be more prosperous, and then continue to the general debate in which people have been having a very hard time of agreeing. The American system is more expensive than it should be for the quality. There's a few elegant, low cost, simple improvements that can be made. I think we ought to make them.