KRUGMAN: Why markets can’t cure healthcare

[kpete]

July 25, 2009, 5:07 pm
Why markets can’t cure healthcare

...........................

There are two strongly distinctive aspects of health care. One is that you don’t know when or whether you’ll need care — but if you do, the care can be extremely expensive. The big bucks are in triple coronary bypass surgery, not routine visits to the doctor’s office; and very, very few people can afford to pay major medical costs out of pocket.

This tells you right away that health care can’t be sold like bread. It must be largely paid for by some kind of insurance. And this in turn means that someone other than the patient ends up making decisions about what to buy. Consumer choice is nonsense when it comes to health care. And you can’t just trust insurance companies either — they’re not in business for their health, or yours.

This problem is made worse by the fact that actually paying for your health care is a loss from an insurers’ point of view — they actually refer to it as “medical costs.” This means both that insurers try to deny as many claims as possible, and that they try to avoid covering people who are actually likely to need care. Both of these strategies use a lot of resources, which is why private insurance has much higher administrative costs than single-payer systems. And since there’s a widespread sense that our fellow citizens should get the care we need — not everyone agrees, but most do — this means that private insurance basically spends a lot of money on socially destructive activities.

more:
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/25/why-markets-cant-cure-healthcare/

[GCP]

1. ONLY IN THIS COUNTRY IS HEALTHCARE A BUSINESS

It's not a business in other industrialized countries, it's considered a right of citizenship.
The USA is Corporatism gone mad.

[RufusTFirefly]

3. But, but we LOVE our insurance companies!

Or so the Corporate Media keeps trying to tell us.
Although I've long been aware of the corporate dominance of our government and our daily life, even I have been shocked by the sheer arrogance of the insurance lobby in this instance.

[mmonk]

2. Recommended.

[backscatter712]

4. K&R!

We all knew this, but it's good to hear it from the Nobel-Prize-winning economist!

[nashville_brook]

5. "private insurance spends a lot of money on socially destructive activities."

that's the rub, isn't it?

i'd go one step further than Krugman. Not only are private markets inappropriate to health care -- insurance is as well. Insurance is about mitigating risk. But health care is something we all need to consume. It's a commodity. You can't mitigate the risk of people needing end of life care (unless you load them all on to "Carousel" at 30, a la Logan's Run). You can't mitigate the risk of people having children.

For a healthy society you WANT people to consume health care. You want people to seek medical attention EARLY. You want people to use this commodity FREELY.

[bvar22]

6. Paul Krugman NAILS IT once again !!!

"There are, however, no examples of successful health care based on the principles of the free market, for one simple reason: in health care, the free market just doesn’t work. And people who say that the market is the answer are flying in the face of both theory and overwhelming evidence."----Paul Krugman

There ARE, however, many examples of successful Single Payer Systems where Health Care is a RIGHT.
Unfortunately, our politicians have said,
"No We Can't. That would be too hard for America."

So Americans are going to be forced to Settle for Less.....a LOT less than the rest of the civilized WORLD takes for granted.

Thank You, Republicans.
Thank You, "Centrist" Democrats.

[FreakinDJ]

7. Cost Over-runs denying Coverage to paying customers

"How Uniquely American"

[Impedimentus]

8. The insurance companies own Congress ...

and that is why there will be no significant health care reform including a public option. All of the arguments are meaningless. Insurance company money has bought the Congress and that same money will NEVER permit reform.

As for Krugman, President Obama should fire Geithner-son-of-Paulson and make someone like Paul Krugman Secretary of the Treasury. However, Wall Street and the big banks own the Treasury and the Federal Reserve. If Wall Street/banks want a trillion $$$ for bailout, no problem. However, a trillion $$$ for keeping Americans healthy and alive is too expensive.

Look at the financial bailout, lip service when it comes to stopping foreclosures and big profits for the money centers, profits made from speculative trading, not from loan activity.

[Wednesdays]

9. K&R

:kick: