Great Article Bob !

[JosephDeacon]

Anyone care to comment on this response to the article?

MLR is there to ensure that the insurance companies have the potential to make profit of no more than 15-20% (minus commissions, overrides, etc.) while providers are allowed (on average, according to data provided by CMS and analyzed by HHU) to have 341% profit margins.

I won't give my opinion on the intention of the law, the outcome speaks for itself.

 

[somarco]

There is no guarantee carriers will make a profit with MLR.

Of course there were no guarantees before either.

But when the govt designs the plan, dictates the terms of the offer (cover anyone regardless of medical history), puts MLR in place AND manipulates the rates the carriers can't win.

At this point, the health insurance industry is the only segment of the economy that is (or will be) monitored this closely on what they can and cannot do. Even regulated utilities have more leeway in what they can do.

As for the rest of your comment, I have not seen anything where providers, etc are generating profit margins anywhere near that figure. Got a link?

And does your source specifically mention profit margin or is it markup . . . which is entirely different.

 

[JosephDeacon]

The source is just a random internet person who posted a comment to your article. No sources were cited.

 

[somarco]

random internet person who posted a comment to your article.

Sounds like someone from NBC news . . .

 

[RayNY]

Sounds like someone from NBC news . . .

Random internet person here, I hear you like sources.

Report:
Nurses: Hospital Price Gouging Driving Up Healthcare Costs, Self-Rationing, Medical Bankruptcies | National Nurses United

CA Specific (hospitals average 451% in CA)
California Hospitals Charges are 4 1/2 Times Their Cost | National Nurses United

I'll admit now, I mistyped the percentage, it's 331% on average, not 341%.

 

[taterpeeler]

How do you propose doing that?

act of congress....... again, control the cost to control the spending.... not that hard to understand

 

[somarco]

California hospitals set charges of $4.51 for every $1 of their cost, exceeding the national hospital average of $3.31 per $1 of cost. In statistical terms, that is a charge to cost ratio of a whopping 451 percent for California hospitals,

How much of that $4.51 do they actually collect?

act of congress....... again, control the cost to control the spending....

Price controls worked so well during the Nixon regime.

Sorry, but no cigar for either of you.

 

[scagnt83]

glad you all disagree..... but the bottom line is to control the cost control the source...... that's just a fact

The source is the overweight american public. Hospitals are just the providers of care. And their cost is driven by the need for care & the competition for care.

If I abused my car, and it constantly broke down and needed repairs; should I tell the mechanic he shouldnt charge me his regular going rate? Is it his fault that I abuse my car?

If I dont like that mechanic's prices I can find a new one.


The problem is the lack of transparency of health care pricing & a lack of competition.
It does not allow for a truly free market to operate.
Its a grey market; with federal intrusion, state intrusion, a lack of pricing transparency, & a lack of competition.
None of that is good for consumers.

 

[JosephDeacon]

Ray - I typed that response as I was heading out to a client meeting. What I meant was that I didn't know who the person was, and that it was a post in re: to the article.

Didn't mean to come off as an ass!

 

[somarco]

If you need new struts you can certainly shop around, and you should. But if you need a used kidney do you really want the lowest price?

You pay 100% of the cost of struts but usually less than 20% the cost of a kidney.

There is plenty of competition, especially in primary care and many PCP's are posting or quoting prices.

But no one shops for a kidney or the cheapest price for chemo.