Comment by craigmccaskill

Fair, don't think I disagree with you on these points. I just believe we can do significantly better. In a similar vein, I believe:

* For profit motives get in the way of cheap, effective healthcare. Maximizing shareholder value leads to higher prices, overutilization of expensive proceedures and prioritization of profit generating services vs. preventive care or basic health care needs and improved outcomes.

* Incentives are currently heavily skewed to the point that providers and insurers are more likely to treat symptoms rather than address root causes or preventive measures leading to a cycle of chronic illness and higher long term costs.

* Access to healthcare should not be tied to socioeconomic status. Employer sponsored insurance and high out of pocket costs create significant barriers for lower income individuals and families, dragging the average down (i.e. the system is fine if you can afford it).

* Administrative complexity in the current system massively inflates cost. The fragmented nature of private insurers, billing systems and out of network shenanigans results in massive inefficiencies and expenses that contribute nothing to patient outcomes. I am confident this comes out to more in savings than the %age profit that is referenced in other places in this thread.