And the Wall Street Journal noted that the same study “found that a typical insurance policy - $2,000 deductible, 20% co-insurance – for a family of four could be had for as little as $172 per month in a reasonably regulated locality like Kansas City, Missouri. But in New York that family’s only option – managed care – would run $840 per month, and in New Jersey family policies run a whopping $1,200-plus.”
Why shouldn’t a family in New York be able to purchase that far less expensive policy from the Missouri company?
If you want to shrink the ranks of the uninsured, perhaps it’s time to open the market and reduce the cost so that average people can afford basic coverage without all the government mandated frills. Instead of blocking the mergers of health insurance companies in one state, perhaps it’s time to open up the competition among all 50 states?
Rep. John Shadegg, Arizona Republican, has proposed just such legislation in Congress; however, Congress in the hands of pro-union/anti-free market Democrats and is unlikely to act favorably on such a common-sense, cost-free solution to the health care insurance problem. Which is why state legislatures should take the lead and open up their own markets without waiting for the feds.
Let’s give choice a chance.
Chuck Muth is President and CEO of Citizen Outreach and a professional political consultant.
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