Government subsidies of health care–often enacted with claims that they “help the poor”–increase demand without increasing supply, causing prices to rise.
Medicare, Medicaid, Obamacare, and the VA system have all INCREASED the basic costs of medical care for poor people.
But there are areas of medicine that are ‘elective,’ meaning that people make choices for the care and pay out of their own pockets. One example is LASIK surgery to correct vision. No insurance policy pays for it, and no government program provides it.
And guess what? The quality of LASIK surgery has increased significantly while the costs HAVE GONE DOWN!
One prominent LASIK surgeon is now charging 35 percent LESS than he charged a decade ago–and quality has greatly improved.
