Quote
Ombligo
So do we do the same for those who refuse to get insurance?
it's the whole slippery slope thing.
Quote
C(-)ris
We need to get everyone some level of catastrophic insurance. In a way we sort of do already, it just means declaring bankruptcy every time you have surgery.
Creating a viable healthcare system is not all that difficult; the difficulty is overcoming the lobby against doing so. Nothing slippery involved.
Buzz's USA Healthcare Plan (in a nutshell)
-> Everybody citizen has coverage.
There would be an Individual Gross Receipts/Income Tax that scales from 0% - 3%, depending on income level.
-
There would be a Business/Corporate Gross Receipts/Income Tax that scales from 2% - 4%, depending on income level.
-
There would be mandatory scalable, employer provided (and part or wholly paid for) supplemental health insurance depending on company's number of employees, and revenues. There would be guidelines covering company-wide employees' choices and options (HMO, PPO, HSA, etc.). IOW, as a company's size and resources grow, so does the mandated coverage level. Smaller companies are free to select higher/better levels of supplemental coverage (to provide better min level coverage, or get higher HSA contribution limits, etc.).
-
This supplemental coverage would be put out for bid to all private insurance companies, based on a
mandated coverage matrix. If a company receives no sub-matrix bids, the company's coverage will be randomly assigned to an insurance company at a rate schedule based on a nominal % reduction from the matrix. If/when a company receives multiple bids for their supplemental coverage, they are free to negotiate their own best deal.
-
This supplemental coverage shall be renewable/reviewable annually, though if/when a company receives any bid(s), as opposed to being assigned a carrier, they are free to negotiate a longer term contract based on the lesser of a contracted % rate less than the mandated matrix, or maintaining the existing price, again, whichever is less.
-
In order to stay in business, insurance carriers must accept all companies assigned to them. An insurance carrier can opt out of an assigned company's coverage on an annual basis, and will not be assigned that company again for a several year period TBD. Of course, the carrier is free to bid on retaining the company's business at the end of the assigned annual period.
-
Doctors' med school tuition will be waived if they agree to practice in an assigned locale, in order to as many citizens as possible with easy access to medical care. Doctor's that wish to opt out would incur a debt equal to double/triple/quadruple their equivalent tuition (or perhaps a fixed $$ sum) payable to the National Healthcare System within a stated period, as well as being liable to their med school for their standard tuition. Kinda like joining the military service to start their career, and ensure access to healthcare for all.
-
Medical groups would be required to treat a percentage of under/lesser covered patients commensurate w/ the population's coverage levels in their catchment area. Groups not meeting this criteria would receive reduced reimbursement from the national plan, until such time as they meet criteria. Below a certain threshold/level, they would receive no national reimbursement whatsoever.
-
Insurance carriers would be free to offer designer policies for companies/individuals looking to only deal w/ opted out medical groups, but I'd hate to think what those premiums would be.
-
The national plan would/should cover ~50% - 70% of all scheduled, regionally adjusted healthcare costs. The mandated private matrix coverage would cover the balance. Base coverage level citizens would be assigned treatment via a locally administered HMO-esque program. Such coverage would be based on provider/facility availability, which dovetails as outlined above.
-
All preexisting conditions are of course covered. The haggling over courses of treatment would be substantially reduced, as the courses of treatment would be overseen by doctors, not insurance company bureaucrats.
-
Everybody wins. Well, everybody that should win, wins.
==