Headlock on Healthcare...

Oh yeah!!! The Ric Flair of Finance, Cory, just posted the truth about Obama’s tax & tax plan…WOOOOO!!!!  Now he has tagged me, the Hulk Hogan of Healthcare to illuminate the current situation in these United States of America!  CAN YOU HEAR ME BROTHER?!

Let’s get started by looking at the numbers that are tossed around as the main argument for Universal Healthcare, then we will get into a little history lesson so we can look at where we are at with some contextual understanding.

Proponents of Universal Healthcare are using the argument that 47 Million Americans are currently uninsured.  That is a fact, that when that survey was done 47 million people in America did not have health insurance.  Now if I just hang onto that number, I can point out that the system is not functioning properly for 47 million people, and obviously that supports a huge change in the way we, as a nation provide health coverage.  

On the other hand, if another fact is presented in clarification of the number above, the idea is very different...and obviously so is the conclusion and solution.  (Please remember that this survey was a snapshot in history, and that these numbers are not static, just as the lives of those they represent.)  Here are the FACTS (WOOOOO!!!):

Actually 45.7 million U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Report, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2007 

12.1 million eligible for current programs (this means they just need to fill out the paperwork but for some reason have yet to do so) National Institutes of Health

20 million are not US Citizens U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Report, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2007

3.5 million have incomes over $75,000 (These could very well be healthy people who choose not to buy coverage but pay out of pocket, or are in between jobs-these are also the people who will pay more taxes under Obama’s tax & tax plan.) U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Report, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2007 

10.1 million have incomes over $50,000 (Same as those making over 75,000) U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Report, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2007 

Those are the facts.  They lead one to have a different idea of the real problem.  

History gives us some additional insight as well.  Did you know that prior to WW II health care was a private matter, paid either out of pocket or at least purchased privately by families outside of the work place?  During WWII there was a freeze placed on salaries.  Companies that wanted to attract the best and brightest could not offer higher salaries for workers.  They instead had to increase benefits packages.  One of the main benefits that companies offered to attract new employees was health insurance coverage. This was a way for the company to give you an increase in salary by freeing up your net income for everything but health care. 

Post WWII the tax law was changed to give tax credits to companies giving health benefits to employees.  These tax credits were not available for individuals or families who wished to purchase health insurance on their own.  This means that your company can purchase the same amount of health coverage that you could on your own for less money-since your take home money is not tax exempt.  

What's so wrong with this situation?  Well, during the time that these changes were solidified in tax law, people stayed with a job for the life of their career, or changed jobs very infrequently.  Today it is much different-with an average of 10 different jobs for the average American from the ages of 18 to 38 (US Dept of Labor).  When people change jobs they lose their health benefits unless they are willing to pay for cobra coverage-which is very expensive.  Instead most opt to pass the brief time period between jobs uncovered by insurance.  They are fee to weigh the costs/benefits and choose to be uninsured.  So, this is a large portion of those we consider as the uninsured.  They are in between jobs, and don't have portable health coverage because their coverage is married to their job.  (Thanks Federal Government! Woooooooo!!!!)  

Another issue here is called job-lock.  This is when someone wants to get another job, but is afraid to change jobs for fear of losing health benefits.  Both job-lock, and the loss of health benefits with the change of jobs are due to the government meddling with the market through tax law.  Today we are reaping the results of the government meddling.  

Just imagine if our car insurance was linked to our jobs in like manner.  Then Walmart employees would all have to take the bus. (I just use Walmart as an example because it is singled out for not offering health benefits to most of its employees.  In this case, if it is a benefit used to attract new employees-do they really need to offer that to get people to work for them?  Obviously they do not.  Wooooooo you Walmart-haters who shop there anyways because they are efficient and have lower prices and have done more to provide affordable food/products to Americans than any other store!!!!!!)

So, this is the main reason we are in the health insurance predicament now.  My solution would be to allow individuals and families to either have the same tax credit that companies receive for purchasing their own coverage, or doing away with the job related tax credit altogether, or a combo of the two.  I would also set up a health insurance exchange between the states so individuals and families could purchase insurance from states where the premiums are cheaper.  And part of the reason one state is cheaper from the others is not because the residents are that much less likely to get sick.  The main reason is because of fewer health care regulations in some states.  Basic regulations are very good, as they protect providers, patients, and insurance carriers.  But in some states, legislators have mandated what "basic" coverage is, and in some cases they add all of the bells and whistles of high-priced packages, the things people would want to choose on their own, so that the basic is too expensive.  Thanks for pricing me out!!! Woooooo!!!

 So what needs to happen is freeing up Healthcare from the cost increasing meddling of politicians who think they know what all Americans need.  Because if we don’t, and Universal Healthcare is established, we will all get the same thing: Mediocre Healthcare!