There hasn’t  been much I have agreed with in the swamp of health care proposals, but I did hear one idea that made sense; a surtax on the Cadillac plans.

This addresses one of the problems of our system. Due to the tax deduction afforded businesses to buy health insurance ( and the lack of this deduction to individuals) we are actually over insured for many Americans.  If we used car insurance the way we use health insurance, we would file a claim for a flat tire, an oil change, a tune up and other routine maintenance.

Insurance should be used to avoid catastrophic claims, not to avoid all risks and all claims. Small claims should be paid by the insured, or if necessary small credit lines.

By inserting insurance into the most menial claims we have further removed consumer accountability from health care pricing.  HSA’s should be far more widely used.

I would prefer to see businesses just get completely out of the health insurance business and let individuals buy their own coverage the way they currently buy auto, home owners, and life insurance. I would certainly like to see less government involvement in our health care system, not more.

But this idea does at least acknowledge that over insurance is a problem, even if their motivation is questionable.

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