Only One Decision to Make with Health Care

With all the fanfare over the town hall meetings, the press and the political parties are obscuring one basic fact about any government-run health care system: a deadly, built-in conflict of interest.

Imagine this. What if some super-major, greedy oil company were to run all the social security, medicare, medicaid and health care insurance in this country? Now imagine that Mayo Clinic or Cleveland Clinic developed a heart procedure or drug that would extend everyone's lives by ten good years. The cost to the greedy oil company would be enormous! Folks would live longer, meaning more social security payouts. And, more chances for other ailments to crop up during those extra ten years -- more medicare and medicaid health care costs!

There is no way the greedy oil company wants you to live longer! In fact, they will need to do what it takes to suppress any new health care innovation that may extend your life.

Why don't we let some super-major, greedy oil company run health care in this way? Why, because that would be a conflict of interest! Their interests will be to keep your life to 65 years or less. Your interests will be to live as long as possible!

It is that simple --- under any legal standard, the government has a built-in conflict of interest. But, unlike the greedy oil companny, they have ultimate power and control. They can restrict new drugs and new medical procedures through their FDA. They can slow funding to research institutions. They can restrict the level of care based on age alone. They can hide how they pull the plug on grandma.


(c) 2009 Knobloch. All rights reserved. Contact for publication permission. http://www.charlesknobloch.blogspot.com/