The government can administer health care more efficiently and more cost effectively than the private sector.
Before anyone buys into this statement that is being made by the Obama administration, look at the following statistics from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Table 4, 2006. Healthcare administrative cost as a percentage of healthcare income:
Medicare = 3% (administered by private corporations)
Private Insurance = 9.2% (administered by private corporations)
Federal Programs = 17.7% (administered by government agencies)
State Programs = 19% (administered by government agencies)
The reason that Medicare and private insurance administrative costs are so low is that the free market forces these private corporations to keep expenses low and service quality high, as opposed to the federal and state government monopolies who operate without any private competition which produce administrative costs that are more than double.
Is there anyone else out there that would like to see private companies compete with the United States Post Office? What do you suppose would be the resulting outcome? Lower postage rates? Faster and more friendly service?
Competition must be present in order for free enterprise to work and deliver the highest quality healthcare for the most competitive costs! A public plan run by the government will only eliminate competition, we the American people have to fight to keep the competition alive or the free enterprise system will crumble all around us.
Matthew T. Berrafato
Elephant Hunter