World Sojourner : 3760

http://www.miamiherald.com/living/columnists/dave-barry/v-fullstory/story/1397654.html 

It was a year of Hope — at first in the sense of “I feel hopeful!” and later in the sense of “I hope this year ends soon!”

Dave Barry’s year in review: 2009 – Dave Barry – MiamiHerald.com

A few tenants for lowering price and increasing quality:

1. price decreases with full information

2. quality increases with full information

3. the less middlemen and more direct choice normally decreases price and increases quality

4. buyers need the freedom to choose whom they buy from when given full information

Reading the current (and seems to be final) healthcare bill it seems that the Dems have managed to craft a bill that’s not helpful to anyone.  Unless the Washington Post missed some major points, the insurance exchange and allowing insurance companies to provide national policies seem to be the only real value-added activities.

Hell, even the socialist government intervention (yet probably needed moves) of making it illegal turn down people with pre-existing conditions won’t come into full effect until 2014.  Sorry folks, you’re screwed for four more years.  I do wonder how the Dems will blame the Republicans for that little provision?  Considering the GOP has been – and let me be clear – completely useless in this debate, it just seems like a stretch.

The first steps in solving this very real problem could have been written on the back of a napkin.

1. A national website showing the price of all procedures at all hospitals and clinics.  Need an MRI in 75035? Search online.

2. The same website (with 800 number for those who don’t have web access) also shows reviews and feedback ratings on the doctors, and people doing the procedures.  Five stars to one star.  Mrs. M and I won’t buy a leaf blower without checking reviews but when it comes to medical activities – it’s a big black box.

3. Insurance – if we need them – then rewards (pays more) to those practices and hospitals that hit the balance between high quality care and low price. 

4. Provide incentives for states to start their own co-ops so there are more insurance choices.  We probably need to incentivize everything from government run to something liaise-faire to see which one really works. [real answer is to start phasing out insurance so you and I can argue over prices ourselves but I’m trying to stay somewhat realistic here]

5. Market exchanges, stuff mentioned as a decent idea above

There’s probably a few more needed ingredients but the above points seem essential.  Healthcare, like car insurance, needs to be more market and less government. Sure, there’s a need at the bottom for some more assistance.  I get that and to a lesser extent agree – so why not just expand Medicaid or Medicare? 

It just seems, from first reading, that all this debate on the correct approach has delivered a camel rather than a well developed horse.  We shall see what the future holds.  Mrs. M and I have a exit strategy, do you?

My MBA made me a data wonk.  Now-a-days if someone (even family) says something or makes a key point I’ll often ask for the proof – where’s the back-up?  Using only the data and trying to separate person beliefs (often skewed) things look like they’re getting better.  Causation or just correlation with the Obama economic activities?  Dunno.  The only thing I do know is that history suggests that inaction would have ended poorly.

Let’s hope the second half of this magic solution occurs as well.  Namely, once the worst is over the nice people in Congress turn off the money faucet and start making hard decisions on how to clean up the new mess which is our debt and deficit.

The Data:

Record jump in existing home sales in July – Aug. 21, 2009

Institutional and everyday investors are starting to return to the market:

State unemployment shows improvement

Obama decided he did not feel comfortable with the photos release, and was concerned it would inflame tensions in Iraq and Afghanistan, put U.S. soldiers at higher risk and make the U.S. mission in those two wars more difficult, according to White House officials.

Obama will seek to delay photos release – White House- msnbc.com

Read: Focus group testing showed release of photos wouldn’t hurt GOP but make Democrats look anti-US and military and would lower approval ratings