The answer is irrelevant unless costs are contained:
The problem is that nobody is going after the root causes of the spiraling cost of care. To simply call for “more free market” or a “single-payer system” without addressing the incredible waste, lack of accountability, and profiteering by third-parties is simply re-arranging chairs on the Titanic. It is the unfortunate nature of politicians to take a politically-motivated veneer and layer it on top of a broken system and call it fixed.
So, lets get to the meat of it. Why are health care costs so high? The amount of tests we order plays a large role. Why do physicians order so many tests? Fee-for-service reimbursement, defensive medicine, and patient demand.
Why not address these core issues? Well, a platform of putting doctors on salary, tort reform, and rationing care is a sure way to finish last in the Presidential race.
So in the end, nothing gets solved.
