What can the United States do to lower health care cost?

Question

The health care system in the United States is in trouble. Many people can't afford insurance or go to the doctor. Many bankruptcies are the cause of health care cost. Something really needs to be done in the United States to improve our health care.

Answer 1

Need to start with not letting people have these ridiculous lawsuits on stupid things. There is a huge lack of personal responsibility in this country. Huge! Yes the medical industry needs to own up, as do insurance companies, but they are at the top of the pyramid. The base (the individual) needs to still take the larger responsibility. For example: Some people see welfare as a free ride and there is no incentive to make them get out, get a job with benefits; also, people are going to ERs at an alarming rate because they have a cold. They know the ER cannot refuse them treatment but the ER doesn't recoup their losses so they pass them on to those insured. Just like people filing (and sometimes winning frivilous lawsuits, which starts the domino effect of rising malpractice insurance, passed on of course to the patients who did not sue. Evil cycle. PUSH PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY!!!

Answer 2

First...get government out of the healthg care business, it has never worked in Canada, many Canadians have to come down here for serious (timely) treatment, the wait for an appointment is months in their own country, and taxes go up a LOT (25% higher than US and the system still doesn't work). Canada health care is a train wreck. Solution? Ask why big high dollar churches don't have free walk in clinics staffed by volunteers? Doctors donate a few hours a week? Let the big hospitals take care of seriously ill. It is totally immoral to have to pay a $150 office call the get a $12 prescription for cough medicine. Get the bulk of profit on illness out of the pockets of insurance companies? Real solution maybe?

Answer 3

No, I could at this very moment, call an ambulance tell them I have a hard time breathing and be in front of a physician within the time it takes me to get to a hospital if I needed too. I could do all this without any money, however, I would be indebted too the health care providers

Answer 4

1 in 7 do not have health coverage, so 6 in 7 do. So lets start out with truthful statements and then we can answer the f*cking question truthfully. Most people in this country have been bitching abour the wire tapping issue, and the governments right to read mail. Now you are telling me that people want the US government in control of their health records?

What needs to be done and what will be done are two different things. I think we need to leave the people that have health care coverage alone, and figure out what to do with the 1 in 7 that have no coverage.

Answer 5

Federal Price controls. Doctors charges and Prescription drugs. Blood tests,x-rays and cat scans. Medicare already has them in place. Just expand them to include all charges. Canada has them, it works well. Some like to lie and say it does not work in Canada but if you talk with any Canadian, as I did, they will tell you none of the lies told by Rush and the Conservative bias Media is truth.

Answer 6

If America is not ready for a Universal or socialized system of healthcare, then I think they should - at least - put some regulations in place regarding Universal cost. Doctors should not be permitted to earn outrageous amounts of money...and maybe if they knew that going in...we would have healthcare providers instead of entrepreneurs providing for our physical well being.

Answer 7

I would imagine Medicare & Medicaid are the biggest drains of healthcare dollars. I don't know how those programs can be cut to allow young people to get insurance. Otherwise you go to national healthcare UK which is free but not very good unless you have a dire emergency.

Answer 8

Invest less money in fighting the whole world, donate to charity for domestic reasons and let the world solve its own problems. I don't live in the US, but I think every country should put more effort into solving it's own problems.

80% of the terrorist organizations is the result of international intervention and funding. It appears that we would all do a little better with just a little bit of egotism.

Answer 9

Prison reform{Make them pay for their own health care and lodgeing} and make elected officials pay for their own health care In fact anyone making over 50 thousand should not get a free ride,

Answer 10

Ban pharmaceuctical companies from holding patents on vital drugs, thus allowing competitors to copy them at greatly reduced costs. The government should contribute to developement of drugs not private corporations.