An eroding model for health insurance
Working Americans once could rely on employer-based benefits. But more people are being forced into the individual market, where coverage is costly, bare-bones and precarious.
The health insurance system has become increasingly expensive and inaccessible. It leaves patients responsible for bills they understood would be covered, squeezes doctors and hospitals, and tries to avoid even minuscule risks, such as providing coverage to a newborn with no serious illness. Full Story »
Posted by Kaizar Campwala
I am the father of three children in their twenties and thirties, and the normal life changes that everyone experiences during young adulthood (school, job changes, and so on) often leave them with gaps in health insurance coverage. This is particularly a concern as we attempt to save for retirement: a single overnight hospital stay for observation after a minor accident ended up costing nearly $30,000! Fortunately that incident was covered by insurance: if not, it would have meant a major financial hit. Of the systems I have investigated, the French model seems closest to ideal--definitely not the English or Canadian single-payer systems.