This is a great illustration, and I would even argue the BEST illustration–brought to my attention by my good friend, JohnnyB–of what’s wrong with the current Health Care System, how it got there, and who’s actually (shockingly enough) coming up with the most radical (and arguably the most logical) approaches to solving said system. My favorite excerpt:

…[E]verything people dislike about our system results from the tax break for employer coverage. It makes costs rise, since people are less careful when they’re not paying out of pocket. It means people often lose their insurance when they switch jobs. And it keeps a lot of people–those who don’t have employers who provide coverage–from having much access to health insurance.

It’s always amazing to me how so many want us to learn from our past and figure out the “how did we get here” when discussing public policy…except for Health Care for some reason. In the case of a flawed public (tax) policy towards Health Care, many instead want to look outward and say: “Hey everyone else is doing it this other way.”

It’s really very simple: We do not have a true market-driven system if the end-user, the consumer, is not involved in the decision-making process. As soon as we give that a try, we’ll see if an ACTUAL market-driven system works.

The lesson to take from this? Everyone needs to figure out a way to write off their individual Health Insurance. Start a business, somehow, sell Amway if you have to, start a non-profit, whatever it takes, but don’t depend on your employer for your Health Insurance, and don’t let 60-year-old tragically flawed tax policies keep you from managing your own health costs and risks.

AND DO THIS WHILE YOU’RE HEALTHY, so that you NEVER have to make a job decision based on benefits.

If you have questions about taxes, call Earl, if it’s the Health Insurance you’re looking for, well you know by now who to call.

Just got through watching a video clip of the candidate’s forum a couple of weeks ago through the chamber.  One of the panelists asked a question about how local Supervisors could help with small businesses offering health insurance.   A few of the candidates (half) suggested the chamber (or someone) should sponsor forming a group for offering health insurance to  small businesses as a part of their membership.

I’m sorry, but “pooling” is not the answer…it’s actually more accurate to say that it’s the problem.  It’s a short-term fix at best and dangerous at worst.  Actually any sort of group coverage is only advantageous for those who have fairly serious health problems, and can sometimes be disastrous for someone who’s healthy when they sign up, but not-so-healthy when they leave their job.

Many of the panelists (candidates) were business owners themselves and stressed how health insurance was their biggest line item.  But only ONE…ONE (Mark Allbright) pointed out the obvious:  that the real secret was not to find a big pool, for more “bargaining power” (which doesn’t really exist-by the way), but to stay educated on new options, and keep your employees educated on how to best use their coverage so as not to make the rates go through the roof year after year.

Mr. Clem mentioned he was paying $2500/mo for TWO families’ health insurance.  Having no idea how healthy these families are, there is a good chance that not only is this exorbitant cost a waste of his money, but a waste of his employees’ money as well.

The real solution?  Call your agent (that’s me) and get on a plan that:

• Takes real advantage of current tax laws.
• Puts the reins of cost controls in the hands of the insured (not the insurance company OR employer).
• Has benefit structures that most insulate premiums from substantial increases.

And (using the service providers in the GCF Network–of course) educate yourselves and your employees on how to live healthy, stay healthy, and keep costs low by being healthy.

John Stossel did a 20/20 piece last week on Whole Foods helping their employees really manage their health care costs. It’s an excellent display, not just of how market forces can keep prices down, but how the absolute best person to determine how to spend your health care dollars is guess who? You.

The long and short of it is…as long as someone else (whether it’s your employer or your government) is making the decision on how you spend your money, the less efficiently that money is going to be spent.

Here’s the article.