To the editor: Contributing writer Veronique de Rugy proposes another free-market solution to our healthcare problems, but there is an inherent problem she ignores (“Why healthcare is so expensive in America, and what to do about it,” March 5).
The basic requirement for a “free market” is that there be a willing buyer and a willing seller. That means that both the buyer and the seller must be willing and able to walk away from the deal if it is not satisfactory to them. This does not exist on either side in healthcare; providers are required by law to treat patients, and sick or injured people are hardly in a position to walk away if the treatment is a little more costly than they would like. While Health Savings Accounts would be a great opportunity for the financial institutions that would hold all that money, they will not solve our healthcare problems.
It is worth noting that many developed countries have healthcare systems that perform better than ours, costing less with equal or better health outcomes. None of these countries have a “free market” system. They all have universal care managed by their governments.
When is the U.S. going to accept that we are not smarter than everyone else in the world and adopt universal care that has been proved to work in so many countries?
John La Grange, Solana Beach
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To the editor: De Rugy’s analysis on the extraordinary cost of healthcare in the U.S. starts on the wrong premise to begin with. Unlike merchandise and services, healthcare should not be for profit any more than basic education, postal service, the fire department, etc.
The tax code she’s criticizing is projected to cost the government $487 billion this year. She references this as though that’s a catastrophe, as if sponsoring healthcare is an abomination.
Universal healthcare, as they have in Europe, has been criticized by American politicians as second-rate healthcare, but it is not so. Europeans are generally healthier, live longer and undergo procedures and care with the same level of quality. Europeans contribute to healthcare costs with their taxes.
I’m afraid De Rugy’s analysis is faulty. Healthcare in America should be a right, not a privilege.
Marie Mulligan, Manhattan Beach
