A new KFF tracking poll shows that a large majority of Americans–Republicans, Democrats and Independents–support Medicare and Medicaid. And, twice as many Americans believe the government should be spending more on Medicare and Medicaid than believe we should be spending less. Still, Republicans are looking at slashing Medicaid, and possibly cutting Medicare as well.
Out-of-pocket costs in Medicare are formidable. They keep people from getting care or lead people to delay needed care, compromising their health So, major support for Medicare expansion is not surprising. (It should go hand in hand with ending the waste and fraud in Medicare Advantage, which is costing taxpayers tens of billions of dollars a year, eroding the Medicare Trust Fund and driving up Medicare Part B premiums.)
There is general agreement among Americans across the political spectrum that we should know a lot more about healthcare prices. But, what people don’t appreciate is that knowing these costs offers them little if any protection. The surgery costs at one hospital might be higher than another, but the anesthesia cost could be lower. Moreover, the specialists at one facility might deliver more medical services than at the other, affecting a patient’s total costs.
The simplest and fairest way to ensure everyone can afford their care is a government-administered system for everyone. Such a system could keep costs down through low deductibles and copays, as well as by ensuring everyone pays the same price for a given procedure in a given community. Suggesting that people can shop around for the best health care prices is insane.
Most people receiving care need care urgently. Those people cannot shop around. But, even people who are receiving elective procedures are hard-pressed to determine where they will save money on care.
Republicans and Democrats alike also favor regulation of health insurer prior authorization rules. Health insurers are using prior authorization to delay and deny care, inappropriately and with impunity. Through prior authorization, they can spend less and profit more.
Lastly, Republicans and Democrats support lower prescription drug prices in Medicare through negotiation. Americans should overwhelmingly support drug-price negotiation for more Medicare drugs; we pay as much as four or five times what people in other wealthy countries pay for the same drugs.
The vast majority of Americans do not support as a priority removing fluoride from our water, as Robert Kennedy Jr. recommends. They also do not support reducing access to abortions or lower federal support of Medicaid as priorities.
Here’s more from Just Care:
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