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142 points helloworld | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0.201s | source
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seibelj ◴[] No.12306806[source]
Can anyone succinctly explain the benefits of having a market for private health insurance companies, rather than a single provider of health insurance (government, aka "public option")? Can a capitalist case be made for their existence? Does the lack of a large private insurance market in countries with government-provided health insurance cause lots of inefficiencies and waste?
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VonGuard ◴[] No.12306849[source]
There is no benefit. The benefit is for the legislatures who passed the law. There was no way that we'd get single payer here in the US because our Congress is very much in the pocket of the health care industry. As such, the markets were a compromise measure enacted by congress to make it easier for people to choose health care. Before Obamacare, it was sort of a black box where only HR people could figure out pricing structures and health care providers didn't really compete in any way with each other.

Obamacare did do some good things that needed to be done, but essentially, everything about it was a bandaid intended to kick this shitty system down the road to the next person who had to deal with it. But hey, at least health care companies can't just turn you down because you have Diabetes or are too fat anymore.

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1. tn13 ◴[] No.12310096[source]
> Our Congress is very much in the pocket of the health care industry.

When you question some group's integrity please show restraint and back it up with solid evidence. Without that these statements are on part with racist statements like "all blacks are criminals".

It is absolutely true that government regulation is hurting healthcare in USA. It has drove the prices up and made understanding healthcare far more difficult. Hospitals do not benefit by these regulations, Insurance providers don't benefit either, Patients don't benefit either. The shi*load of these regulations has already crossed the mark where anything makes sense.

Government regulation is driven less by healthcare industries willingness to get hurt in the butt but by the voters who want government to do "something" everytime someone dies.

https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-profit-margins-in-the-hea...

Profit margins of insurance companies are nothing worth boasting about. If the congress is really in pocket of insurance companies let me say they are doing a lousy job for their masters.