Here's to Your Health III

Amidst all the foofaraw about healthcare reform, one constant refrain of those who oppose a public option is that private insurance companies will be unable to compete with a government-run plan: "A public plan is essentially a stalking horse for a single-payer plan. . . . There is no way the private sector will be able to compete" ("Public Option Fades from Debate Over Health Care").

Can we get a "So what?"

We comprehend why the insurance industry and its paid legislators worry about this. We fail to understand, however, why the masses who descended upon Washington yesterday are so protective of Big-HMO. (OK, they weren't ONLY protesting healthcare reform: They also wanted the right to brandish firearms and shoot illegal immigrants, but healthcare was on the agenda, too.)

Look, YNSHC is basically happy with his insurance provider but would hardly be traumatized if a cheaper government-sponsored alternative came along. And if conservatives are all about the market--which is all about competition--then why fear the prospect of consumers freely choosing a government option that they perceive to be a better value and/or a better provider of healthcare? On the one hand, conservatives complain that the government is essentially evil and incompetent; on the other hand, they worry that a government-run health insurance program would be so wildly successful as to bankrupt the private insurance industry.

One seemingly reasonable fear is that so many people would choose a public option that it would bankrupt the government. This makes no sense. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that 11 to 12 million people might take advantage of the option--a manageable number. But let's say, as some conservatives fear, that the number will be much higher. The Lewin Group, a consulting firm, has projected that more than 100 million people might enroll. OK, Lewin Group (which, by the way, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the insurance giant United Healthcare--we're just sayin'), let's take it a step further: Let's say everyone enrolls in the government plan! Then what? Well, government costs will increase exponentially! And who will pay for this? The taxpayer!

Again, can we get a "So what?"

Look, folks, you're all paying these costs already. That "free" insurance you get from your job? Not so much. The Solipsist figures, conservatively, that the nifty coverage he gets from his job costs his employer at least $1,000 a month--probably a lot more. Of that $1,000, some portion goes to pay his insurers' marketing and other administrative costs--costs which a public provider would not incur. If we took home that extra $1,000 a month, even if we had to pay an additional 700, 800, 900--hell, even 999 dollars a month in taxes, we'd still end up ahead financially!

Now we understand why right-wingers were so intent on disrupting any reasoned debate of healthcare reform. When you look at the basic facts and think about the whole thing logically, they really don't have too much going for them. Don't let the screaming drown out the sense.