Republicans must think, (and maybe others) that healthcare will work with capitalism

[RoeVWade]

If that were true, people could just refuse to see their doctors or go to the hospital until doctors and medical facilities lowered costs to market forces.

So, they either hate people who don't earn enough, or just abominable mofos. Tell me why you might believe something else?

And I don't consider myself a socialist. It just seems obvious. It doesn't work as supply and demand.

[Ocelot II]

1. Capitalism in health care has been tried already.

People got sick and died because they couldn't afford to pay doctors. Then health insurance was invented, or rather evolved, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and for awhile it was relatively affordable. Medicare and Medicaid were created in the '60s, which helped the elderly and the disabled. But then the capitalists got in on the health insurance market big-time in the '80s and we're back to where we started. If you can't afford to pay the doctor because you can't afford health insurance, you get sick and die.

[RoeVWade]

2. And when you know they will only do anything if dragged kicking and screaming, that they're not into a real fix.

nt*

[nycbos]

3. It does in Switzerland.

Their health system is basically a better version of Obamacare. Their is a mandate to purchase private insurance but the prices are heavily regulated by the risk government so everybody can afford it.

And in many countries in Europe, private insurance exist as supplementary benefits. There are many different models of “universal healthcare” it’s not one-size-fits-all.

[leftstreet]

4. So capitalism only "works" with "heavy regulations?"

[nycbos]

6. Maybe so

Capitalism is similar to democracy, in my opinion. Churchill said "democracy is the worst form of government, except for all other forms of government." Well, capitalism is the worst system, except for all the others.

[leftstreet]

7. Well, that would be more like socialism then n/t

[keep_left]

10. We tried that, and in fact it continues as the ACA. The basic idea...

...was pushed by for years by Newt Gingrich and the Heritage Foundation as "free market" health care reform before it became law under Obama. Unfortunately, Congress struck down the tax penalty (non-insurance fee) for the ACA in 2017; after that, no one was penalized for not carrying health insurance coverage under the ACA. The ruling also eliminated an important funding mechanism. The result was predictable: a race to the bottom, including price spiraling caused by massive adverse selection in the market as the youngest and healthiest stopped contributing. This left the oldest and sickest patients with increasingly expensive coverage. Now it seems once again like life before the ACA, with double-digit premium increases each year caused by adverse selection pressures (which may be even worse now, because pre-existing condition clauses are outlawed by the ACA).

What's the solution? Don't ask me...there are a lot smarter people than myself who can't figure this out. As a first step, I might suggest we all start electing better politicians, but good luck with that.

https://www.commonwealthfund.org/blog/2021/supreme-court-throws-out-aca-lawsuit-not-aca
https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/bachmann-campaign-press-release-newt-romney-the-individual-heath-insurance-mandate

[leftstreet]

5. DURec

[haele]

8. Wealthy Republicans think that healthcare will work with capitalism...

Because they get "money back" due to investments in profitable insurance and medical products and systems that are on "the market". So it doesn't matter how much they have to spend on their healthcare, if their ROI covers those costs.

My late FIL was moderately wealthy - six figure annual income in retirement but only 7 figures in the bank account.
"Why don't y'all just get a trainer, eat healthier, and see a good doctor more often?"...and he didn't feel any wallet pinching shelling out thousands of dollars a year on top of his Cadillac insurance policy for a gym (with a trainer) and golf club membership, organic groceries, and just "dropping in" to see his doctor four times a year more than his policy covered just to chat and run occasional out of network tests.

The rest of the GOP don't understand the varieties of either Capitalism or Socialism available, so their opinions on how to provide healthcare for a majority of folks is based on their personal opinions or "vibes".

[Torchlight]

9. I doubt Greed and Healthcare can effectively exist in the same egg

One or the other becomes THE priority, and it certainly ain't Healthcare these days.