Is cheap private insurance illegal now? Is that why my premiums are so outrageous? </sarcasm>
Insurance is not like a car: there are no luxury and budget brands. Either you can afford premiums + costs not covered or you cannot. Not going to the doctor is not an option: the physiology of a poor person is the same as that of a rich person. The treatment therefore is the same. Thus what you are proposing is basically legalizing leaving the poor behind. That was in fact how things used to work up until roughly 35-40 years ago. We then decided that it was a bad idea because the quality of care for those who had the "budget" care was so terrible that we would all be willing to pay more and not risk ending up in their shoes.
Look, I don't disagree with everything you are saying. We need to reign in spending, streamline the government, reduce the size of the military, fund more social programs and education. I do disagree with the tiered approach. Healthcare is a basic human necessity. Lots of first world governments provide it and do it better and cheap than the "free market" in the US. One day people will realize this and we will have sane care for sane prices. Until then we need the hybrid approach like the Affordable Care Act, Medicare/Medicaid, and private insurance.
Insurance is not like a car: there are no luxury and budget brands. Either you can afford premiums + costs not covered or you cannot. Not going to the doctor is not an option: the physiology of a poor person is the same as that of a rich person. The treatment therefore is the same. Thus what you are proposing is basically legalizing leaving the poor behind. That was in fact how things used to work up until roughly 35-40 years ago. We then decided that it was a bad idea because the quality of care for those who had the "budget" care was so terrible that we would all be willing to pay more and not risk ending up in their shoes.
Look, I don't disagree with everything you are saying. We need to reign in spending, streamline the government, reduce the size of the military, fund more social programs and education. I do disagree with the tiered approach. Healthcare is a basic human necessity. Lots of first world governments provide it and do it better and cheap than the "free market" in the US. One day people will realize this and we will have sane care for sane prices. Until then we need the hybrid approach like the Affordable Care Act, Medicare/Medicaid, and private insurance.