Daily News Updates - Health Insurance News

Healthcare in the Forefront, Pt.3 – The “what-goes-‘round” vicious cycle.

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So this is a critical element of the health insurance equation, the risk pool. It requires forward vision. In a purely capitalistic world, forward-looking visions are closely held at bay. The machine doesn’t work that way. And it is exactly a machine, it has no conscience at all and very little distant vision, just a set of mechanical rules. Like a gasoline engine, it simply consumes every bit of fuel it can get it’s hands on as quickly as it can. Unfortunately, many of our corporate executives have been so devoted to their business, that they are beginning to think that way themselves. They have found ways for a few to beat the health insurance system by stockpiling extra fuel for themselves. They have little interest in risk pools. In capitalism, they are labeled ‘externals’. Typical externals are like ‘loss-leader’ things such as, free gifts for opening a bank account. Their only purpose is to bolster business. So if an external is not anticipated to yield a quick and greater return, it is quickly ‘shelved’. This is the rub with risk pools. Health insurance risk pools reduce the opportunity for immediate gain.

Hillary understood this well. That is why so much of this is on the line right now. Without her mandate of all adults having health insurance, an important percentage of the insurable, the young and healthy (they have long been the largest), will continue to ‘opt-out’ of health insurance while they’re still young. They won’t even consider the future when they will need health care. Boom, there goes the risk sharing. This is one of the biggest problems today because of decisions the now-old made (or didn’t make) yesteryear. Now they’re in a ‘pickle’. Who’s gonna pay? Tough question. One answer is very clear, though. We must break this vicious cycle.

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