The Elephant in the Room

The health care industry, pharmaceutical companies, tort lawyers and the government have created a new class system in America. These classes are: those with private or public employee health insurance, those with Medicare or other welfare insurance programs, and the uninsured. As these classes have developed, numerous discussions have been taking place as to how we can get everyone covered by health insurance. Insurance is not the issue. The issue which should be under discussion is why are the costs of health care so exorbitantly high? For example, a half hour helicopter ride to a hospital costs $32,000, when a helicopter can be rented with a pilot, for $900 per hour. A routine knee replacement costs $60,000, or an overnight hospital stay runs $8000. The costs of a long term illness of a month or two will carry a price tag of well over a million dollars. When doctors are asked about this they always point to the high cost of malpractice insurance. Hospitals and pharmaceutical companies shrug off the questions and tort lawyers laugh all the way to the bank. Meanwhile the public is mollified by the distractions of the circus portrayed by the media. The correct questions are never asked so the public is led down the slippery road of Progressivism. Big Brother can be the only solution, so we are told. While this debacle is before us, behind the scenes the oligarchical power of corporate America continues its rapine fleecing of its citizens. Daily, gigantic transfers of wealth are taken into the coffers of these corporations while the uninsured cower in fear of even a minor illness. All a person has worked for, for a lifetime, can easily be lost in a matter of days, if this person or a family member is hospitalized. At the end of a persons’ life, all of his property is routinely transferred to a long term health care provider for a generally short term of care. Now, even the insured are fearful because the costs have risen so far and so fast that good insurance doesn’t cover the costs, so the consumer is left with enormous bills. What are the questions that should be asked? One, should we look at tort reform which would limit the amount which a doctor or hospital could be sued for malpractice? By doing this the cost of malpractice insurance should go down. Two, should regulatory agencies streamline their operations, so new drugs and technologies can come to market at a lower cost? Three, should auditing of hospital financial records be done so as to determine the real cost of treatment? There is a good chance that the hundred dollar screw drivers from the military of the ‘80’s have found their way to our hospitals today. If these reforms aren’t made voluntarily, Uncle Sam will use the excuse of compassion to take over the health care system. Obamacare will put private insurance out of business and the public will be left with two choices, become a ward of the government or become an outlaw. While driving through many small towns in America, one can see the enormous new hospital on the hill overlooking their berg. With a little imagination, one can envision a feudal castle of the 14th century with all the serfs and resources of the surrounding village serving the gargantuan appetite of their Lord. Let’s not let this happen in America.