Repeal and DON'T Replace

I keep seeing these articles about how the Congress should repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.  Though I favor the repeal, I don't see any need to replace.  Let free people figure out a solution to their problems, don't let government impose a solution.  When we look at areas that have seen the most involvement by government (e.g. healthcare or education), we see prices rising faster than inflation for decades.  However, in areas where government is less involved or practically absent (e.g. internet, computers, digital cameras), prices have plummeted.  This is not a coincidence.

 

Health insurance is not insurance.  Insurance is meant to offset risk.  Home insurance is not meant to provide a new paint job every few years or pay for new bulbs in light fixtures, or reimburse for the plumber unclogging the sink.  It is there to cover large but also unlikely expenses, such as the roof being torn off by a tornado or a fire.  Likewise, car insurance doesn't cover oil changes, gasoline, or new windshield wipers.  Car insurance is for rare events like a crash that causes thousands of dollars in damage.  However, with health 'insurance,' it is expected to cover annual physicals, flu shots, and virtually every visit to a medical professional.  It isn't paying for unexpected costs but rather it is covering all costs.  Health insurance needs to turn back into insurance.  Insurance would cover something like cancer or being hit by a bus but not expected and routine expenses.  That change would dramatically reduce 1) the cost of health insurance and 2) the price of health care.

 

Prices will adjust to the ability of people to afford.   Part of the price reduction will come from the efficiency of first party payer.  If the doctor doesn't need a billing department to contact insurance companies to secure payment, that cost can be eliminated and the price of all procedures drops.  The insurance companies will likewise shrink on account of vastly fewer claims.  With the current system, the patient is only concerned with the co-pay and any expenses that might accrue directly to them.  There is no point in haggling to get a better deal.  First party payer will end the $30 aspirin and other over-inflated charges.  This free market approach will be bumpy but no worse than Obamacare has been and far more beneficial.

 

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

10th Amendment

 

Health care is a power that was not delegated to the United States by the Constitution.  As such, it needs to return to the States or to the people.  Of course, government doesn't like surrendering tax dollars or regulatory power, so I doubt the free market will get the contract.  The replacement may be less odious, but will still be beyond the legal authority of the federal government.