[T]he colon exam exposed [Obama] to radiation "while likely providing no benefit to his care," [cardiologist and healthcare policy analyst Dr. Rita Redberg] wrote in an editorial in the medical journal. Obama's experience "is multiplied many times over" at a huge financial cost to society, and to patients exposed to potential harms but no benefits.
Well, why "at a huge financial cost to society"? That's only because the government pays for so much health care. If I'm not paying for it, I don't give a rap whether my neighbor wants a colonoscopy at age 45 for his peace of mind. It's only when the government gets involved that we start turning a suspicious eye on each other to see if we can castigate others for their "frivolous" biopsies or "unnecessary" screenings.
In a free market, most of us wouldn't buy insurance that covers every test under the sun -- because it wouldn't make financial sense to do so. And if I pay for my tests out of pocket, you can be damn sure I'm going to ask: Do I need it? Are there risks associated with my getting the test? What are the risks if I don't have it? And then I, taking the expert medical advice of my doctor as well as my financial situation and the other things I want and need in life into account, will decide whether or not to have that test. I, and I alone, would decide, in the context of my life, whether that test was necessary or not, and nobody else would have any business enforcing their view on me.
Do you want third parties -- whether the government or private insurers -- telling you that the care you want is "too much"? Only a free market in health care will let you make the final choice.
2 comments:
"...at a huge financial cost to society..."
Now here I would say this is an exaggeration. I think part of the cost is subsidized by the value of amusing fact that the President's colon exam is public knowledge.
:-P
If you're willing to pay for brand name Prozac or brand name Ambien, and not asking the taxpayers or the insurance company (aka the other insureds) then I'm happy to fill that prescription and pass along the outrageous surcharge because you think "genetics don't work as well". Maybe I'll put a bow on it, too.
But don't aske for brand name drugs that have generic equals if you don't intend to pay for them.
--another sympathetic pharmacist
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