Exactly!!
That's why I was asking what
"restrictions" needed to be lifted.
That "restriction" that needs to be lifted really wouldn't be a "restriction", it would be removing individual states right to regulate industry. I'm all for that. We are one country, and our industry regulations should be standardized between the states.
Now all that said, our healthcare crises really has little to do with individual states being able to regulate insurance companies. Insurance isn't the cure to our healthcare crises, it's the cause of our healthcare crises. Healthcare should be treated like any other industry, and healthcare providers should have to compete based upon price and service, with the individual customer making the choice of what services they purchase from what providers.
In my fantasy world, I would love to see billboards advertising medical services. Like Hospital A having an advertising campaign promoting them for having the lost price cardiac center, then maybe Hospital B advertising that they have the best quality care, and hospital C advertising that they provide the best value for the money.
Can you imagine how much cheaper and more efficient health care would be if Doctors offices published their prices on their websites? I picture something like this "Come to Dr. Bobs, we only charge $25 for a basic visit, and all shots are $15 or less". Or "xrays for just $42.50 each at Dr. Bills". Or "Need a new script for your bloodpressure medication? Bloodpresure evaluations starting at just $9.95"
It's only when someone else pays, like your employer or your insurance company, that you don't care about price. And that is the point that we are at today, as consumers, as long as most of us have low deductable insurance with set copays, we could care less how much a provider charges.
What if we all had gasoline insurance that had a $15 copay? We would care less how bad the gas stations were ripping off our insurance companies. And insurance companies actually LIKE high prices. the higher the price for whatever they are insuring, the more value that the customer sees in the insurance, and the more $$$ a customer is willing to pay for the insurance.
