Re:Graphs that show America’s health-care prices are ludicrous
by wtallis on Wednesday March 27, 2013 @01:42PM
(#5450846)
The VA does a better job because they actually run their own hospitals and clinics. That makes a huge difference - they can directly control many of the costs, and can wield their negotiating power far more effectively than Medicare is currently allowed to.
Even leaving aside government provisioned care, there are several simple ways Medicare could use its massive purchasing power to control costs. Part A could take into account alternate available treatments and their effectiveness-adjusted-cost when determining what procedures to cover. Part B could coordinate care through a single gatekeeper physician. Part C could be eliminated, as it was a cost saving experiment that failed. Finally, Part D could negotiate with drug providers on behalf of the entire pool instead of delegating negotiation to dozens of insurance companies, each with smaller pools.