Should we have a single payer healthcare system?

Question

Insurance companies don't provide any health care. Wouldn't a single payer system, that we all belonged to, give us more collective bargaining power when dealing with the pharmaceutical companies and hospitals? A single payer would represent over 200 million people. That's a lot of collective bargaining power.

Phillip, I'm not suggesting a single provider, I'm suggesting a single payer. A single payer would actually spark more competition between the pharmaceutical companies and health care providers, not less. Wal Mart is actually able to go to their vendors and dictate what they will pay for their products, because they're such a large purchaser of their goods. That sparks competition, between the vendors, in order to get Wal Mart's business.
Well 250,000,000 heal care consumers in one single payer plan would certainly be able to dictate what we pay for drugs and care. That would spark more competition and efficiency between pharnaceutical companies and health care providers. Collective bargaining would work. I'm convinced of it.

Answer 1

In other words, you've got a central point of corruption.

Answer 2

And how would you organize this single payer system? Through the force of the government? What if someone didn't want to play along and have his/her hard-earned money paying for the healthcare of some able-bodied lazy person? Force them to pay? Do you think that just because the government does it that it's not stealing?

What if doctors and nurses decide they don't like the low wages provided by the "single payer" so they quit or move to a country where they're paid better? Wait, that last one is already happening in single payer countries, leading to doctor and nursing shortages.

Answer 3

Sorry, can't work. 1) Most communities have only one hospital (if they're lucky), so it'd be kind of hard to find a competitor to create a bidding war. 2) Most Americans are unwilling to go without medical treatment. The collective would have no real power when half of its members are sneaking through the hospital's backdoor for treatment on their own dime. 3) There are enough of us independent minded people, who would quit a job before joining a union, to keep the health care industry in business until the rest of you came crawling back. 4) Lower prices mean lower salaries for health care workers. Lower wages means less talent entering the field. The quality of health care would be equivalent to the Chinese products filling Wal-Mart's shelves. Thanks, but NO THANKS!!

Answer 4

Competition has ALWAYS resulted in better and more cost effective services.
Reducing the total number of providers (eliminating the poor quality providers) and creating a rating system, along with descriptions of services and benefits that don't require a lawyer to read them, may be a good idea.
The benefit you described is a good one, but a single provider would come with the disadvantages connected with ALL monopolies.