It’s pretty bad news when the good news about health insurance is that the cost went up only 7.7 percent in the past year — the lowest rate of increase since 1999 but still twice the rate of inflation.
Since the free market is always right, according to those who control U.S. health policy, consumer-driven health plans — in which people get a tax break for spending their own money on the cheapest and most effective medical treatments — should be the answer to cost control.
Despite being the administration’s hobby horse for six years, these plans are being offered by a whopping 7 percent of employers and selected by only 4 percent of workers. Maybe the market does know more than those bureaucrats in Wash-ing-TON, D.C.
New York Times business columnist David Leonhardt has an interesting take on all this, and it bears serious consideration: Good health and longer life have a cost; why don’t we shut up and pay a fair price for them and stop spending so much on consumer crapola.
If it’s a choice of your money or your life, too many of us are dithering like Jack Benny
If you found this reporting useful, please consider supporting our work with a small donation. Your contribution lets us continue to bring you accurate, thought-provoking science and medical news that you can trust. Independent reporting takes time, effort, and resources, and your support makes it possible for us to keep exploring the stories that matter to you. Thank you so much!