O/T aj, if the ONLY medical insurance that was mandatory / required was catastrophic, and everything else was out of pocket, you wouldn't need 100 claims adjusters and billing plans per geography. That kind of stuff is easy to administer and trouble shoot. Every other detailed plan won't change anything.
Providers, who aren't high end cardio / onco / specialists get screwed by payers and patients and the Fed's. To boost their paying volume, they prescribe drugs - fast, easier, more patient satisfaction. And, yes, that moves the cost of feeding the drug companies down to the patient.
New drug to market costs are a Billion $US or so. Why? FDA, preemptive law suit defense, and a strongly held belief, backed by billions in pain and suffering damages, that the best defense is to avoid a risky future. Frankly, I'm astonished that we waste the time and money proving efficacy of new drugs.
Free market my nether regions.
Just the opinion of a practicing TII diabetic ...
rr
