Doctor’s Blog

Whether Obamacare has made healthcare more expensive is a tricky question to answer, considering that the Affordable Care Act is mind numbingly complex and is supposed to cover a huge, diverse population with different incomes, family circumstances and healthcare needs. The answer depends on whom one asks and who one asks about.

It is clear, just looking at the raw numbers, that the initial claims suggesting Obamacare would reduce healthcare costs have proven to be false. Healthcare costs have increased since the advent of the ACA.

However, an analyst with Investopedia suggests that on the average, insurance premiums in the exchanges have increased, but at a slower rate than they did for individual plans before the ACA’s implementation. However, that may not be the whole story.

Another analysis conducted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services suggests that if a family does not qualify for the government subsidies enacted under Obamacare, the costs of healthcare have spiked considerably. The study cites the example of a couple making $70,000 a year and thus unqualified for a subsidy being forced to pay $38,000 for a silver plan with an $11,100 cap on out-of-pocket expenses. Since the individual mandate is no longer in effect, the couple has opted to drop their coverage.

Thus, the answer to the question is “It depends.” For some people, who qualify for government subsidies, Obamacare has not caused a great increase in healthcare costs, especially compared to what was the case before the Affordable Care Act was enacted. However, for people who do not qualify for the subsidies, healthcare insurance under the ACA exchanges has become increasingly unaffordable.

The numbers suggest that for many people, Obamacare failed in its stated goal to provide healthcare insurance at affordable prices. The situation suggests that it is time to reform healthcare reform. What shape that reform would take, ranging from “Medicare for All” to a more free-market solution based on competition and price transparency will be a matter of considerable debate.

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When one focuses on how to deal with a health care crisis such as the covid-19 pandemic, the natural tendency is to dwell on things like treatments and vaccines. However, some researchers at the University of Houston have hit upon a technological mitigation for the Covid-19 virus and, indeed, just about any virus, in the form of a special heated air filter.

The Covid-19 virus spreads by lingering in the air after being expelled by a sneeze, cough, or someone just speaking or breathing, for upwards of three hours. Some experts have suggested that the virus can be spread through a building in its air conditioning and heating system. The U of H researchers have noted that fact and are using it to kill the virus.

The air filter works by passing air through a nickel foam that is heated to almost 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Tests have shown that over 98 percent of the Covid-19 viruses are killed instantly when caught inside the air filter.

The air filter can be installed in airports, schools, office buildings and, of course, hospitals. Buses, planes, trains, and even cruise ships could also be so equipped. A portable version could be used for offices and even the home. Circulating the air through the filter can make places where large numbers of people congregate safer, making it less likely that humans will catch Covid-19. Installation of the filter widely would likely cut down on infections, hospitalizations, and, most important, lasting injury and death.

The air filter will not be a total substitute for a vaccine or mask-wearing, social distancing, and hygiene. However, the technology would likely become a powerful weapon for controlling and reducing the pandemic, alleviating the pressure on hospitals and other healthcare facilities, and saving many lives.

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In the United States, our health care is among the most expensive in the world. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) data shows that in 2017, the U.S. spent nearly double the health care expenditures per capita of comparable countries (analysis done by KFF). Despite this fact, the quality of health care in the U.S. is not the best. The OECD has shown that the U.S. has consistently performed worse than the average of comparable countries with mortality rates in the U.S. being higher in most categories measured. A question many people a starting to ask is why do our health care costs keep rising while the quality isn’t improving as quickly.

There are too many factors to discuss in this short article. However, there is one factor that plays a big role in this growing problem, managed care plans and like insurance plans. It’s likely that if you have insurance, you are a member of one of these plans because they make up the majority of health care plans in the U.S. These plans introduce a monopolistic nature to the health care system and doesn’t allow for the inherent price and quality checks of a free market to benefit the people who rely on the health care system, which is to say, everyone.

How it works

These managed care plans allow members to get medical care from specific health care providers and medical facilities at reduced costs. These health care providers make up the network for a particular managed care plan, and they are contractually obligated to provide care to members at a reduced cost. For people without the managed care plan (people outside the network), prices can be extremely high. Ideally, the members of the managed care plan will be paying a lower rate than they would if they went outside the network.

The problem

It may be true that members likely pay less within their network, but members could be paying less both inside and outside their network if managed care plans and networks didn’t exist at all. This is because health care providers within a network no longer have to operate competitively. They are guaranteed to have customers because going outside the network is too expensive for most people, and there is little competition within a network. This means that they no longer have to price their services competitively or even have to ensure that their quality of care is competitive.

The solution

The upside to all of this is that many health care providers are actively trying to remedy this problem. Dr. Steven Goldstein and his fellow physicians at Houston Healthcare Initiative (HHI) are trying to set the new precedent for the health care system. Contact HHI today to learn what they can do for you.