U.S. Healthcare
The fundamental issue with the healthcare system is unchecked healthcare costs that are making it unaffordable. One can attribute a major part of the rising costs to the current fee-for-service model and third-party payer model. They need to be replaced with a result-based payment system that emphasizes individual empowerment.
We cannot ignore the fact that almost all of the stakeholders (hospitals, doctors, drug companies, and health insurance companies) are in the business of making money. Therefore, it is vital that there is accountability, and transparency and free competition, starting with elective services, procedures, drugs, and insurance premiums.
- We shall prohibit healthcare providers (hospitals, doctors, etc.) from having patients sign blank forms authorizing them to bill for any amount regardless of quality of service.
- We shall limit punitive damages to curtail defensive medicine practices.
- We shall prohibit healthcare providers from sending unpaid medical bills to collection agencies.
- We shall prohibit healthcare providers from reporting patients with unpaid bills to credit scoring companies.
- We shall require credit agencies to exclude unpaid medical bills from determining credit scores.
- We shall encourage local communities, drugstores, Costco, Amazon, etc. to compete for subscribers to insurance programs and the delivery of medical services.
- We shall make employer health insurance coverage an option.
- We shall allow the sale of health insurance across state boundaries.
- We shall allow state exchanges started by Obamacare to be merged into one national exchange, possibly under Medicare.