The correct question to ask is not why America's health care costs more than other nations, but rather why do those other nations cost so much? Why do the same procedures, office visits and prescriptions we've been using for years still cost the same or more? That's the opposite of proven free-market results. We should be moving to open the market more, not further suffocate it. As I posted in the other thread before I left : The US government accounts for roughly 45% of health expenditures in the US. Do you see any correlation or causation?

One of the problems is that unlike battery-farmed chickens, cottonseed oil or clothing, the raw product in healthcare has variable quality with no obvious way to specify a minimum standard or to discard units that don't make the grade. Unlike a sack of flour, it also has an opinion and a voice and a long list of questions from the internet. ;-) Every patient is treated as a singleton, just as every Aston Martin is hand-assembled. So yes, it costs more. To continue the analogy, I agree that one of the ways to reduce costs is to drive a cheaper car. Maybe Joe Public would be happy with a BMW 5-series health service if it reduces cost, or even a Chrysler Neon health service. Or maybe people would be interested in a far cheaper Aston Martin that can be any color you like as long as it is black. ;-) I agree, these discussions need to take place. But I don't see how that can happen if people are more interested in shoulder-charging the other team whether it brings them closer to the goal or not.