Two observations;
In 2005, I had to take a sick co-worker to the local hospital in Long Island NY. The Nassau University Medical Center had an emergency room about like any other hospital; however, when she was admitted and brought upstairs to the wards,we were treated to a horror show, facilities inferior even to some third world countries. This is what socialized medicine looks like. I was afraid to leave her there.
Two – keep in mind that along with the fact that a government insurance scheme will neither be what you or I want, nor will it work, as the late Harry Browne so presciently said; any plan that either of these two tools comes up with will be pyramided atop the following; a system of medical licensing that severely restricts the supply of doctors and insulates bad ones from consequences; a medical education system that does likewise; a retarded medical malpractice system that passes on the horrific costs created by bad doctors and hospitals onto the good ones; a horribly fascist health-insurance system that uses government to restrict competition and skate out on its obligations to patients; a pharmaceutical – regulatory complex that insulates the companies from competition and lawsuits by FDA regulation and patent monopolies…the list goes on. The system is ALREADY completely socialized on the cost side and fascist on the profit side. It is completely and thoroughly rotten, there is not a stitch of free-market medicine anywhere within it, and anyone, on the left ot right who believes there is is a fool.
It needs to be pulled out, root and branch, and be allowed to re-organize itself in complete freedom. No licensing, no med school control by the AMA, no insurance mandates, no regulatory protection for insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, vaccine makers, no patents or FDA regulation, none. An utterly free market is the only way we will get the best care at the lowest cost. Bad doctors will be quickly put out of business by lawsuits or insurance costs. Doctors, pharmaceutical companies and insurance companies could only charge what the market would bear without government restricting their competitors.
Would there be mistakes? There are thousands now. Would there be deaths? We have a system that is currently estimated to kill 100,000 patients per year through mistakes. Will there be toxic drugs? Look at Vioxx, and Phen-Fen.
Government Doesn’t Work. The free market does.
