Why the healthcare crisis won't go away

Why the healthcare crisis won't go away
Christian Science Monitor 07/18/05
author: David R. Francis
(Copyright 2005)

The United States faces a medical emergency. Costs of the nation's healthcare system are growing so fast they are out of control. Many employers are dumping escalating healthcare expenses for both employees and their retired workers as fast as they can manage, fearing a loss of competitiveness.

So far, the White House and other would-be physicians have decided that the answer is more of the same - the magic of consumer choice in a free market. But some are skeptical that this will provide a real cure.

...influential people in Washington have persuaded themselves that a more competitive healthcare system will slash costs enough to keep it workable.

...

Currently, the average American consumes $6,420 worth of healthcare services a year. That's more than $12,200 a year for the average family. It's the most inefficient medical system among industrial nations.

US healthcare costs have reached $1.6 trillion a year. That's 15 percent of the nation's economy, up from 5 percent in 1963. Other industrial nations devote less than 10 percent of gross domestic product to healthcare.

The US pays more than twice as much per person as other wealthy countries.

...

Moreover, costs are rising at a rate of 7 to 9 percent a year.

...

US life expectancies are shorter, infant mortality rates higher, and other health measures are worse than in nearly all other wealthy nations.

Approximately 45 million Americans lack health insurance all year; about 80 million go without it for part of the year.

In the long run, such a consumer-driven medical system is not likely to be politically viable. It may take five to 10 years, but at some point the tide of political and public opinion will turn. Then the US will need to debate and consider implementing a changed system, probably a form of a "single-payer" system that would be less expensive and provide quality healthcare.