Elaine Parker writes in the Orange County Register that what is needed in healthcare reform is not more government control, as typified by the ACA and Medicare for All, but the forces of the free market to loosen constrictions upon it and enable innovative solutions:
Healthcare is an area of the U.S. economy that needs a dose of free market innovation. The current quasi-private system, set-up by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and largely controlled by the government, is characterized by rising costs, dwindling choices and a falling quality of care. Washington politicians and insurance bureaucrats have forced themselves into the exam room as the patient-doctor relationship is slowly dismantled and medical professionals become slaves to paperwork and compliance.
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But instead of untangling Uncle Sam from the network of private practices and insurance providers, they’ve decided to add even more government into the equation. Medicare for All or the public option, which is simply another step towards government-run healthcare, enjoy popular support.
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Without government shackles, healthcare could be offered to Americans in alternative ways that benefit everyone. Patients, for example, could leverage Health Savings Accounts to more easily access Direct Primary Care — a healthcare offering similar to that of Netflix. Participants pay a reasonable monthly cost to access basic care without insurance middlemen jacking-up the prices.
Read the rest of the article here.