Quote Originally Posted by Montmorency View Post
I can't help but think that actually lowering costs across the board would be more effective as regards the Democrats' ideological goals than merely increasing the costs while forcing more individuals to pay toward them.
The total cost of care cannot be lower and must be significantly higher. Government figures suggest roughly 15% of all Americans are uninsured. 70% of that figure is uninsured for economic reasons -- coverage being too costly. Another portion cannot get insurance because they have been denied coverage due to pre-existing conditions that generate a high morbidity risk (these people were screened out of coverage by Insurance companies because insuring them, with their high likelihood of high costs, would have jacked up the overall rates of the coverage more.

Thus, in trying to cover everybody, we are increasing the number of people to be insured by 15-17 percent (depending on illegals). Moreover, some of those 15% include high morbidity cost individuals who are likely to create a greater cost vector than the "average" person. Let us assume that, all things being equal, aggregate cost of healthcare increases by 16% solely on volume (I would actually presume it to be more).

Some of this is supposed to be "headed off at the pass" by a greater reliance on preventive medicine to minimize the need for more costly interventions later. Recent projections put this savings at less than one quarter of one percent...but let's be perky and assume that over time we can make that a full 5%.

That takes our 116% total health costs and drops it back to 110% of current (again, I think I am being kind). However, 60% of that increased medical need (the uninsured) are because they cannot afford it NOW (poor, working poor, above poverty level but no room for frills). So that cost factor MUST be shoved onto those who are already paying (directly or indirectly) for their own insurance. If it isn't, it must be absorbed as additional debt by the Government.

In addition to those for whom the health care exchange packages must be more or less fully subsidized, other groups are being subsidized by the government as well, particularly for those in what we label our "lower middle class," to make their care "affordable." Those subsidies too must be passed on to the full price paying customers or absorbed as debt.

Costs for health care cannot go down and must go up. TANSTAAFL.