A Workable Health Care Compromise?

AN EDUCATED CITIZENRY DISCUSSES HEALTH CARE

James Musters: “Dana Gould reports for Bill Maher . . .”

☞ Oy.

THE BRITISH SYSTEM

If poor old wheelchair-bound Nobel Laureate and Presidential Medal of Freedom winner Stephen Hawking, the physicist, had been subject to the British health care system, well – as Investors Business Daily noted recently – he’d probably have died long ago. IBD later retracted this opinion when it was brought to their attention that Hawking is British, and rather likes the care he has received. But, as reported here, that episode and others have got the Brits so steamed, it may even affect the results of their election.

The thing is, their system is less expensive than ours and produces better results – but they like it anyway! Go figure.

THE COMPROMISE

Many of us would like to see some improved version of the British or French or Canadian system (with our spending vastly more than they do, there would be room for improvement, even as our costs came way down) – but a “single-payer” system is not in the cards. Failing that, we hope “the public option” will be part of the compromise. Yet even that is now in trouble. Well, here’s my suggestion: a “public option” for those states that want it. (And not forced on any that don’t.) Couldn’t that pass? And if even just 10 or 15 progressive states embraced it at first, wouldn’t that be enough – if it worked well – to get most others to jump on later?

PRIVATE EQUITY

This is off topic, off-color, and in German. But if you have three minutes and even the vaguest curiosity about how “private equity” firms are perceived by some – oh, heck, even if you don’t – you may find this very funny. PE is “private equity.” LOI stands for “letter of intent.” And EBITDA is “earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.” I don’t want to spoil it, so just trust me. (Again, warning: harsh language.)