Cubanbob

No, we don’t pay twice for the same care. It’s all done on a system of rebates. If you are not a welfare recipient or unemployed, you get billed by your GP, specialist, pathologist or hospital. You then go to the Government and/or your private insurer and get a rebate to help pay the bill. You end up paying a gap amount.

If you are a welfare recipient you get free treatment, but use the Government hospital system, which is slower and gives much less choice of doctor.

We all pay a 1.25% tax levy top pay for the Government’s part in the system. Of course this is no where near enough and the Gpovernment has to provide more money from consolidated revenue.

Our system is halfway between Private enterprise and socialist. It therefore doesn’t really work as well as it would do if the Government were to exit and leave it to the professionals.

I would argue that the example of other countries should show that the US should avoid Government interference in the health market like the plague.

If the US Government is so concerned with poor people not being insured, then it should just pay their insurance premiums for them and butt out.