Who would have thought that staunch Republicans and conservatives, unbeknownst to them, finally realized the benefits of the “single-payer” system? Interestingly, Texas A&M University announced yesterday that, in order to save $1.7 million in health care costs every year, the university’s Board of Regents has decided to consolidate all employees into a single health care insurance plan.
The move will apparently not only save A&M close to $2 million annually, but the monthly premiums are expected to be greatly reduced for all university employees. Some will see a 41% reduction in health care costs. No kiddin’
As described in the News Release below, the new Single A&M Care Plan won't have any negative impacts on getting access to existing medical services.
Just to be clear: this is not a true single-payer system, but one similar to Medicare (i.e., with deductibles and co-pays, etc.) (and managed by a private insurance company); hence putting the expression in quotes above.
What’s more striking?
This announcement corroborates what I have been discussing over the last three years:
Ballooning health care cost: is Medicare the culprit? (see figure below)
The case against the U.S. health care system
Let's Spread the Risk! (I mean Health care; Not Flu.)
As discussed in these posts, putting everyone into the same risk pool significantly helps in reducing health care costs. In short, this is what A&M is doing.
When will a similar proclamation be made at the national level?
The News Release:
Here's an example about how health care expenditures changed following the implementation of the single-payer system in Canada in 1971:
Blue line: US; Red line: Canada
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Abrawang
sagemerlin
FusunA
Dr Stuart Jeanne Bramhall
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Jan Sand
Salon.com
Comments
r./
In truth, change "A&M" with the "U.S." in the text above and we get Medicare for all...
The fact is govt programs already insure the elderly and the disabled under Medicare, veterans under the VA, the destitute under Medicaid and the children of the poor under SCHIP. So who do insurance companies insure at exorbitant rates? Mostly people who don't need healthcare -- and prior to Obamacare, they dropped anyone with any serious health problem.
That's a helluva business model if you ask me.
And this, as Steve points out, in staid and staunch
College Station, not wild and whacky Austin.
Of course, up in Austin they're saying:
It's so obvious even an Aggie can figure it out.
http://www.mforall.org/p/Louisiana
Bless him for his very strong words!
- Bob the Health and Health Care Advocate
The status quo is defended by free-market ideology/mythology; single-payor is defended by the fact that it works, as even this small example demonstrates.
Myriad: You guessed it right!
To anyone who calles me a Grammar Nazi, I invoke Godwin's Law.