One of the recurring themes in the debate about health care reform involves the alleged need to resolve the “crisis” of the uninsured. Not only is the actual status of the uninsured shrouded in a fog of mythology, the fixation on this narrow segment of the patient population is endangering the cause of meaningful reform: As Michael Tanner and Michael Cannon put in this excellent piece:
Everyone agrees that far too many Americans lack health insurance. But covering the uninsured comes about as a byproduct of getting other things right. The real danger is that our national obsession with universal coverage will lead us to neglect reforms … that could truly expand coverage, improve quality and make care more affordable.
The plight of the uninsured is a SYMPTOM. It is NOT the disease. If our attempts at health care reform do not recognize this fact, the real disease will continue to metastasize. What is the real disease? Perverse incentives caused by a series of government interventions in the health care market, not the least of which being misguided tax breaks for employer-provided insurance.
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