Implementing universal health care without cost controls is a recipe for disaster:
What can be done? The Swiss are still trying to figure that out. But Dreifuss said more managed care is one possibility, as well as setting up a government system to pay for the largest healthcare costs. The latter suggestion, called reinsurance, has also been floated here, but rejected so far on both sides of the ocean.
The solution suggested, rationing more managed care, was rejected by the American public. Good luck selling that idea again.
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Looking at the Swiss Socialist Party’s recent position paper (”Neuregelung der Pflegefinanzierung”) on health care funding, we learn that the Swiss health care inflation Ruth Dreifuss is worried about is 5.5% annually from 1998-2005 inclusive. Drug prices went up 6.7% annually.
Don’t let the facts get in the way of spin. That’s the KevinMD motto.
Swiss patients already pay compulsory insurance premiums and a percentage of the cost of treatment. It’s not free.
The total ‘costs’ of the Swiss system are still way smaller than the US. US spends much more money on healthcare per capita than any other country in the world.
If the US moved to the Swiss system there would be 1) a large reduction in total cost and 2) a 100% reduction in the number of uninsured people.
Some disaster, huh?
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