0 sats \ 2 replies \ @Bell_curve 20 Jul \ on: Who owns the US debt and how Bitcoin can fix it? bitcoin
The three largest expenses are Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.
Privatization of all three programs will save money
I used to think similarly, but the more I study the case the more I concluded that doing that will make it worst medium to long term.
I think that the root of the problem with medicare and medicaid is that the medical attention and the medicines are private, when the health system is private, sickness is a business and therefore the incentive is to treat you and therefore milk you, not to cure you and thus, most protocols are created in that line, is all business, doctors are trained in medicine school that way, thus, they do not know better until they are seniors and understand better how the cookie crumbles...
If all the health system, from the pharmaceutical conglomerate to the last hospital was state owned, the business of the state to reduce cost will be to heal people. Very well spent taxes...
I had that epiphany while working few months in Spain, noticed that most of their health system is public and worked well at that time, doctors were quite different than in USA, they will talk about stress control, diet, exercise, avoid prescribing pills unless strictly necessary... It was refreshing and weird at the same time... Yet, medicines are expensive, not as much as in USA, which are unreal, but neither that cheap.
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Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements to doctors and hospitals are rationed and cost contained.
Why are geriatric doctors understaffed and underpaid? Government reimbursements are low.
A lot of doctors are moving toward a cash only policy because there is less paperwork and fewer restrictions. They can focus on patient care rather than wait for insurance reimbursements.
The main problem in healthcare in USA and most of the world is over reliance on third party payment.
Look at areas where there is no insurance: plastic surgery, LASIK surgery and fertility treatments such as IVF. These specialists are the highest paid in general.
American healthcare was cheaper and better before 1966. When did Medicare and Medicaid start? Answer should be obvious.
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