Health Care

This article says well what I think:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20090720/cm_csm/yakers

If there's no motivation to keep costs down, nothing will. Personally, we benefit greatly from Vermont's extensive coverage that includes our kids. But there's nothing in that to motivate us to either care for the kids better out of our medicine cabinet, or to keep costs down when we take them in. Nor is there anything to encourage us to not be wasteful as we manage Patience's diabetes - it costs us nothing out of pocket! So while we are thankful for our coverage, and while we will likely never opt to not have coverage for us or the kids, there is a downside to it.

We get top notch care probably because there still is non-government care available in our state. Those here who don't normally accept Medicaid patients, do with referral on an as-needed basis. We have been the beneficiaries of that and thank God for it. That said, if you're on Medicaid and you "no show", at least one of our doctors has a one-strike-you're-out policy (probably negotiable in case of true emergency if you have a good record for showing up). Why? Because when you're not footing the bill, you can skip the appointment at no personal expense, which inconveniences everyone and leaves the doctor with the bill. So they put their teeth where they can to be sure their patients take their appointments seriously. Universal health coverage would make this impossible. It's a no win situation for everyone.

-Shiloh