The Solutions To Affordable Health Care

The primary reasons for the rising health care costs are huge service and administrative costs and the lack of competition.  So how do we fix it?

Actually the solutions are quite simple.  We eliminate the majority of service costs.  This means taking the cost of filing insurance claims away from the health care provider, and eliminating the majority of the claims service cost from the insurance provider.

We promote true major medical insurance and make

changes to eliminate first dollar coverage medical insurance.  We promote and encourage medical savings plans.  Medical savings plans will give people cash reserves to pay predictable, routine and preventative health care costs.  This will promote competition and eliminate the cost of insurance company involvement. 

Simple right?  How do we do it?  Actually, it is quit simple.  I think I could write the legislation myself and it probably would be less than ten pages long. 

1.          Make the discounting practice to insurance companies illegal.  Individuals paying for their normal routine health care must not be penalized. 

2.          Make it illegal for any health care provider to have direct contact with any medical insurance company, or ask a patient for their medical insurance.  Service companies or accounting firms can provide this service if the patient desires, but it will not increase the cost of health care from the health care provider.  These companies can hire the displaced workers from the claims departments of the insurance companies and health care providers.

3.          Encourage true major medical policies with high deductibles of maybe $50,000 or more per injury or disease.  Deductibles are per injury or disease, and NOT annual.  These policies will have no benefit limit and no co-pay.  We must not run predictable, routine and preventative health care costs though medical insurance.

4.          Encourage individual medical savings accounts that accumulate over the years.  Money put in these accounts would be tax exempt if we continue with our archaic tax system.  These savings accounts could be used to pay predictable, routine and preventative health care costs.  It could also be used for major medical insurance premiums in the event of an emergency.  Maybe major medical insurance premiums could also be discounted with proof of a medical savings plan. 

5.          A “Luxury Tax” will be imposed on any first dollar coverage medical insurance.  This will have to be implemented in stages based on a person’s age, as older people do not have the medical savings accounts in place.  Eventually this “Luxury Tax” should be as high as 100% of the premium. 

6.          There will always be poor people.  Private charity or government run clinics and hospitals similar to the present VA hospitals and clinics will provide health care for the poor. 

This solution may seem radical, but think about it.   It

will work, and it will reduce health care costs.  The biggest roadblocks for this simple solution are politicians and insurance companies, which will fight the change, because it will cost them money and power.  I think most health care provides will welcome the change.

I believe this could reduce health care costs by 40% in the first year and as much as 80% went fully implemented.  Think about. It makes sense.