| America has a choice. Health care can either be part | | | | been cut - chopped, in fact - some by as much as |
| of the free market - or not. Or it can remain a | | | | 70%! The reason? They desired to be more |
| hodgepodge mixture - as it already is. | | | | competitive in the local market. |
| According to Abraham Lincoln, "I am a firm believer in | | | | Now that's one example of the free market at work. |
| the people. If given the truth, they can be depended | | | | If certain medical items were deregulated - hearing |
| upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to | | | | aids, for example - watch how fast the price would |
| bring them the real facts." | | | | drop. The situation is complex and could not be |
| America, you, the people, need to decide. | | | | solved overnight, but with a little ingenuity, it could be |
| Health care has two primary elements: products and | | | | solved! |
| services. Products are easier to analyze than | | | | There are too many questions to be addressed in a |
| services, so let's focus there. | | | | brief discussion, but let's address just one: hearing |
| Health care products include items like crutches, | | | | aids. Perhaps there was a time when the industry |
| wheelchairs, hearing aids, eye glasses, artificial hips, | | | | required FDA regulation, but I would argue, that day |
| splints, medications, lab tests, etc. | | | | is past. In this era of cell phones and iPods, the free |
| We all understand that manufacturers need to make | | | | market could manufacture inexpensive hearing aids |
| a profit. If it costs $5 in raw materials to | | | | with various settings, using online hearing evaluations. |
| manufacture a jacket, we don't argue when they sell | | | | In fact, why not have Verizon get in the business? |
| it wholesale for $10. We understand they have to | | | | With the computer-literate baby-boomer generation |
| cover their development costs, their labor, their rent. | | | | reaching Medicare age, in a free market the problem |
| Nor do we argue when retailers mark the price up to | | | | of $3000 hearing aids would take care of itself. |
| $20 - they, too, need to cover their overhead - and | | | | True, some patients would require help from an |
| hope to make a profit as well. The mark-up also | | | | audiologist, but likely not the majority. And I apologize |
| allows retailers to discount their price if desired, and is | | | | to the audiologists and all those making a living on |
| a cushion against inventory losses, shoplifting, etc. | | | | $3000 hearing aids who may need to find a new line |
| But how is it that a drug that costs $4 this year may | | | | of work. |
| have been $100 last year? Why do hearing aids cost | | | | What's the potential savings if 1% of 35,000,000 |
| $3000 when a home computer is $300? How can | | | | Medicare recipients saved $1000 on a hearing aid: |
| over-the-counter reading glasses cost $2 and | | | | 350,000 x $1000 = $350,000,000. |
| prescription glasses $200? What does it cost to | | | | Now that's a start. If I could vote on health reform |
| manufacture an artificial hip? | | | | I'd start by writing common sense into the law. I |
| A curious thing happened today. I received a notice | | | | hear there's no law against it - it just seems so at |
| from one of the two local hospital systems regarding | | | | times. |
| updated lab test pricing. Of course, I expected the | | | | Copyright 2010 Cynthia J. Koelker, M.D. |
| prices to be higher. Lo and behold, the prices had | | | | |