Unpublished WSJ Submission

I wrote the following in response to a chilling article by Federal HHS Director, Kathleen Sebelius.  Newt Gingrich had a lengthy response which did get published, but unfortunately mine did not. 
Anyway  here is a link to the Sebelius OpEd, and my response.

Sebelius OpEd: 

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704082104575515851336184716.html


The title of Kathleen Sebelius' Op-Ed, "Health Insurers Finally Get Some Oversight", captures the essence of the piece very well. It immediately reveals her belief that such oversight is something that US citizens are clamoring for. Not jobs, not economic growth, not smaller government, but health insurance oversight. Her sentiments occupy a special place in the realm of "out of touch".
In a free economy, judgments such as "excessive or unjustified premium increases" should be reserved for citizens and private organizations, not bureaucrats. I have personally never wished to be unburdened from deciding whether a vendor's pricing is fair or not. In a free society this is a private choice, not a public choice. Insurance costs are indeed high but they cannot be kept under control simply by command. This has never worked, and it will not work now, particularly when there is a simultaneous command to increase benefits.

History shows that when costs are controlled by command, instead of by the market, other costs emerge such as waiting, lower quality care, diminished access to new technology, and trips to foreign countries for health care services. These non-financial costs keep the quantity demanded in line with the available supply. Sadly, other non-financial costs include pain and suffering from treatable illness, and death. This is not hyperbole, just a stark observation from what has occurred in nations such as Canada and England that adopted similar plans. Price controls also stifle medical innovation and reduce incentives to enter the field of medicine. It is in this respect that the new bill not only fails to repair what is broken, it will actually break the parts of the system that functions well.

American medical innovation is the best in the world. Some of our best innovations come from the Federally funded NIH (National Institute of Health), some come from American private enterprise, and some innovation is imported. No matter where the innovation occurs however, America far surpasses other nations in our ability to bring innovation to market to help patients. The majority of marketable medical technology on the planet is developed in America. These technologies extend and improve the lives of sick people around the globe. America is also ranked #1 of any country by the WHO for health care responsiveness. There is certainly a relationship that exists between the excellent technology and responsiveness that we enjoy, and the high costs that we pay.

The impunity with which Ms. Sebelius vilifies insurance companies for "rate hikes" has populist appeal but no merit. Costs are high because patients are shielded from the costs of care and have no incentive to behave like price conscious consumers. Physicians typically have no need to include costs in their decisions either. Because the Health Care Bill does nothing to remedy these problems, we are now witnessing the beginning of government price controls. Those who have rented apartments in New York City or bought gas during the 70s know what is next, and despite what Ms. Sebelius might think, families throughout the nation are not high-fiving in the living room shouting “finally”.