tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23683658.post115252309721381645..comments2024-03-25T05:23:41.171-04:00Comments on Bilbo's Random Thought Collection: Bilbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14213505386288233192noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23683658.post-1152541501367825502006-07-10T10:25:00.000-04:002006-07-10T10:25:00.000-04:00Bilbo: Glad to see you've come back up on the net...Bilbo: Glad to see you've come back up on the net:<BR/><BR/>Great Post, especially the first issue. Of course people of faith find it easier to let go--although that can be carried way to far, as the existence of slamofascist suicide bombers proves!<BR/><BR/>Second point: no argument here. It would be really nifty to try out the following system: Patients and doctors could sign a statement requiring both sides to accept binding arbitration in case of unexpected consequences. The reward for the patient would be that he/she would pay a reduced rate, based omitting the fraction of the doctor's fee caused by his malpractice insurance. The doctor would gain the peace of mind knowing he couldn't be sued into the poorhouse. The arbiters would be medical professionals (say teaching M.D.s, social workers, economic experts (to measure the value of the loss to the patient--say much less to an old guy, compared to paralysis of a youngster., etc. Also, nothing would be paid for losses during pure cosmetic surgery! Obviously punitive awards would disappear, as would lots of lawyers.<BR/><BR/>Third point: Your plan switches the tax deduction to individuals as opposed to businesses. Along with that switch, I would expect the recognition of the system that worked 50 years ago. Those who did have health insurance normally only bought a "Major Medical" policy. This policy only kicked in when the costs of a single illness exceeded a threshold (about a year's salary). People would before malpractice, pay about one hour's labor for a doctor appointment. While we can't expect it to be that cheap, we could help by establishing pre-tax medical savings accounts, so people would have an incentive to save some untaxed money, any dividends on which would be also untaxed. Should drive down the costs of medical care--make make totally unemployable millions of people who just shuffle insurance paperwork around! Remember, they don't produce anything, just like lawyers!<BR/><BR/>Proposition III should logically soon result in your proposition IV.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com