Mayor, officials face residents at Town Hall Meeting
Isadore Hall named Assemblyman of the Year
Keeping the ‘Lights On’ for after-school programs
HUD grants provide opportunities for Compton residents
Head of LA child services says crisis is brewing
If ObamaCare is bad, what would be better?
By
Dr. Alieta Eck
ObamaCare is a wildly unpopular law for anyone who knows anything
about health care. The election proved that.
Perhaps it is time for the politicians to admit that the government
cannot provide health care. Period. All government can do is set up
an administrative scheme that pays many people to decide who qualifies
for which government program, gives out entitlement "insurance" cards,
but then underpays for the actual care. Bureaucrats get paid while
physicians do not. Taxpayers get fleeced.
Before 1965, the administrative costs in a doctor's office were
negligible, especially when it came to caring for the poor. Typically
the doctor would not even bother to write out a bill. For the average
patient, the doctor charged a reasonable fee and if the patient had
insurance, it was his job to get reimbursed. People bought "hospitalization" insurance
policies.
Today the poor seek Medicaid — the huge state and federal program
that entitles the recipient to "free" care. But since the
physicians must fill out forms only to be given a fraction of a reasonable
fee several months later, most refuse to take Medicaid at all. So Medicaid
recipients with sore throats inappropriately clog up the emergency
rooms with twice the frequency of the uninsured. The system is expensive
for taxpayers, demeaning to patients and generally unworkable.
An innovative solution to our health care crisis would involve
several layers of care.
The first layer could involve the average person paying his doctor
directly for services rendered. Paperwork would be minimal, patient-physician
confidentiality would be maintained, and prices would be kept down
by simple competition. Living healthy lifestyles would save money.
A second layer would be personally obtained, non-cancelable health
insurance for unforeseen major medical maladies and accidents. These
policies should have the coverage and deductible that fit a family
budget. The states should merely oversee that the contract terms are
met, but not mandate what is to be covered.
Thirdly, safety-net, nongovernmental charity clinics could be
scattered throughout every county in every state with each clinic deciding
ways to determining the eligibility of those seeking the free care.
...
...Subscribe to the Bulletin
print edition by CLICKING THIS BUTTON:
ADVERTISE | CLASSIFIEDS | ABOUT US | CONTACT US | SUBSCRIBE | HOME
This site and its contents ©2010 thecomptonbulletin.com