Obama Care

[JoeRedskin]

Pretty simple: The house bill = Increased cost in taxes & premiums for all, decreased quality of care for the vast vast majority to increase care for some.

Does nothing to address the heart of the issue - the natural anti-market forces (see Schneed's earlier posts on duplication of services) created by the health care market; medical malpractice costs driven by a small minority of bad physicians and refusal of physicians to punish other physicians; the regulatory costs of pharmaceutical R&D as opposed to production; and physician shortages.

It will take a few years for the full effects of this to be felt - Probably sometime around the mid 2010's, and it will be the next president that will have to deal with ungodly mess. As to costs, my guess is that premiums will increase by at least 50% over the next 5-6 years, medicare taxes to be doubled, and the floor on the wealth surcharge will be substantially lowered. As to quality of care, longer waiting times for care and decreased quality of service (can't make an appt. on time, TS - "we're to busy, you will have to reschedule for six weeks from now", etc.). All the problems that exist now in healthcare provision but greatly expanded - but, yes, a small minority will get healthcare that need it but do not have it now.

Essentially, Obama care takes the existing system - with all its market inefficiencies - xpands it and, in turn, expands the inefficiencies. Rather than addressing and reforming the root causes of ever expanding healthcare costs as part of plan to create a comprehensive healthcare coverage, Obama care simply creates a mandatory expansion of the existing flawed system by adding a government insurer to expensively operate as an insurer of last resort.

Bad legislation created by hyperbole and scare tactics (on both sides of the aisle) that wasted an opportunity for real healthcare reform. Horrible leadership all the way around.