KT,
Things like management compensation could also easily be studied. I don't think that stands in the way of reform. The greater the abuse, the easier it will be to reform the companies.
Obviously auto insurance in an entirely different and less risky game, but conceptually it's the same thing. The companies would just have to be run slightly differently. If Warren Buffett and others can run Super Catastrophe businesses properly where they are insuring things like earthquakes, 9/11, etc.. then health insurance can also be run properly also.
To get any benefit from more companies and greater freedom of choice, you actually have to allow companies to create policies that suit the desires of the individual customers. You can't dictate what has to be insured and create super policies that cover almost everything. Those waste massive amounts of admin money and make the lives of individuals and health care providers a nightmare, In addition, they sometimes even force some consumers to subsidize aspects of healthcare for others they would never even consider for themselves.
Obviously, tweaking this industry is not going to solve the problem because we would still be in the hole TRILLIONS of dollars for the promises government made in the past that it cannot keep. Also, we have a society that doesn't comprehend the basic concept of limited resources. Everyone wants everything, providers are more than willing to give it to them, and insurance companies simply pass through the costs. However, anything that moves the needle in the right direction will be a plus.
This industry is not going away (thank God because if government takes over I will surely shave my head and get a few skull tattoos lol). So we might as well try to get it right.
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