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Politics : A US National Health Care System?

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To: Lane3 who wrote (3251)12/15/2007 4:23:07 PM
From: Mary Cluney  Read Replies (2) of 42652
 
<<<What a stupid statement! The whole argument is dumb. Of course a for-profit enterprise costs more than a non-profit one, all other things being equal. >>>

Dr. Relman has been studying and writing about this subject for over two decades. His "conclusion from all of this study is that most of the current problems of the U. S. system - and they are numerous - result from the growing encroachment of private for-profit ownership and competitive markets on a sector of our economy that properly belongs in the public domain. "

In case you miss the point. He does not advocate that everything belongs in the public domain. An arguement for private for-profit ownership require that they add value. Where is the value added? Dr. Relman makes a compelling argument that health care is unlike other industries and belongs in the public domain:

<<<The Medicare system has administrative costs of less than 3 percent, with all the remainder of expenditures going to physicians, hospitals and other providers. The private insurers, on the other hand, have corporate and administrative costs of 15 to 30 percent, and in addition outsource many other services they use to control costs by restricting the use of expensive resources. As a result, it can be estimated that only 50 to 60 percent of the premium dollar ends up with the providers, who themselves must pay additional administrative costs to deal with the regulations of the multiple insurers they must bill.
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