Say "No" to Government Health Care

A recent study shows that the average premium for a company-provided family health insurance plan has risen 131% over the last decade.  I'd venture to say that everyone agrees that the system needs to be reformed; however, the manner in which to reform is a highly contested matter.  Any reform should lower the cost and increase the availability of health insurance to the average American.  The best option that our government has come up with thus far is the Baucus Bill.  Even if you believe the rosy projections about $500 Billion in savings from Medicare, this bill will still cost in excess of $800 Billion, leave 17 million citizens uninsured, and dramatically raise the cost of health insurance for both individuals and families in America. 

Perhaps instead we should be looking at market-based solutions.  In Pennsylvania, companies like Hershey Co. have cut their costs in half and encouraged competition in the marketplace by only sending their employees to highly-rated hospitals.  Vermont has greatly reduced ER visits by providing their elderly citizens with counseling services to help manage their chronic conditions before they become critical.  Through a system of incentives, Safeway has been able to cut costs by 40%.  Whole Foods has been able to insure more of their employees while simultaneously reducing costs using similar methods.      

Government programs are rife with fraud and have a propensity for cost overruns.  Medicare alone burns up about $100 Billion per year via fraud and its 1990 projection (forecasted in 1965) was off by almost 750%.  As I've written previously, regulation is costly and actually serves to increase the cost of health insurance.  There is no need to spend $1 Trillion to reform the health care industry in America.  With the stroke of a pen and essentially no spending health care costs could be cut dramatically simply by allowing for the sale of health insurance across state lines.  The market is far more powerful than the government could ever dream to be.  Let's all just keep our money and allow the market to do its thing.