Even though I reduced my insurance plan with Anthem to a high deductible plan the rates went up 20% specifically because of Obama Care. The reasons stated in the letter from them were the "free" item mandated for women and that kids can stay on till they are 26. Now I have one child still on my plan, but the reality is he could buy his own cheaper, because he is young and healthy. There is no free lunch. Rates are already high because we already pay for others. Ask anyone who works in health care.
A century ago there was no health care insurance. Half a century ago there was no real health care insurance either. You needed to go to the doctor, you paid for it.
I have two bothers and an uncle who are doctors. They all say the same things. Now people that have insurance think there is good reason to prolong someone's life, at great cost, for months, after living to an old age. Children of parents demand that everything be done that can be done to extend their loved one's life a minimal amount. These costs are enormous. Ask any hospital worker.
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Personally, even at a young age of 55, if I were to get real sick and have just months to live, I would not want hundreds of thousands of $ spent to gain a small extra amount of low quality life. I would say God has determined that my time had come and accept it.
My idea is to let people that want that special end of life treatment to pay extra for it. If it is that important to have an 80 year old gain 1 month, then they can pay extra for that priviledge.
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People now think that healthcare is a right. It really is a priviledge. It is a blessing that we have the technology to do so many good things, heal so many terrible conditions, and make painful conditions much less painful. Most countries in the world have none of this. We are quite spoiled here in the US.
If we can separate out the areas that are the huge components of cost in the system we can make progress on this issue. When I moved to California in 1981 I paid about $35 per month for Kaiser (I was 24). I had a $5 or $10 copay. Today I pay $500 for my wife and I and have a max of $10,000 deductible between the two of us. That needs to get fixed.
