LA Times: Let's dive into a healthcare insurance pool

[ManicMaurice]

Interesting article covering a little of the background on why America's employer provided health coverage system is broken. It's not a perfect article, but it does hit most of the important bullet points ...

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lazarus20-2009sep20,0,5992465.column

He also left out ... 1/3 of American workers are considered part-time or freelance and as a result are ineligible for most employer provided medical coverage

[ManicMaurice]

I vote for a regulated capitalistic market. We would be foolish not to harness natural market forces, but these forces only work when everyone is individually participating using only their immediate financial resources. And when the market is reasonably regulated by a democratically run government that equally values the needs of both the buyers and the sellers.

If you give people a sense of ownership they will always make sure the markets regulate themselves, but as soon as a credit or provider system is set in place the natural regulation and sense of personal responsibility are gone. It's at this point that things get out of hand and the prices increase and the quality takes a dive.

In essence, we are removing the ying from the yang of a naturally occurring system. Add back the ownership by having everyone purchase their medical coverage and the market and its regulation will take care of itself. Prices, quality, and governmental regulation will all happen naturally.


BTW, (in case you hadn't already guessed) I think this guy's proposed solution, the 2nd page of his article, stinks. Its a muddled compromise that we should not have to make. And it will only make things more complicated and harder in the years to come.

We should fix the system now, not later ...

[Sweeper]

BTW, (in case you hadn't already guessed) I think this guy's proposed solution, the 2nd page of his article, stinks. Its a muddled compromise that we should not have to make. And it will only make things more complicated and harder in the years to come.

I concur. It will also drive up unemployment by punishing companies for hiring.

[ManicMaurice]

I concur. It will also drive up unemployment by punishing companies for hiring.

Yep, and we already hobble our companies in the international market by saddling them with the burden of providing health care. No need to make matters worse ...