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Health Savings Accounts Put You in Control of Your Healthcare

As Health Savings Accounts grow inwhile denying more expensive specialist care
popularity, there is growing fear among thoseto those with serious medical problems. This
who want to nationalize healthcare that theyis because most people (voters) are healthy
will not be able to put the cat back in themost of the time, and the sick and dieing are
bag. There are already over 3 million HSAless likely to be able to organize into a
owners, and by 2010, the Treasury Departmentpolitical force.What makes the United States
estimates as many as 45 million Americanssuch a great country is the "freedoms" we
will be covered by HSA plans. They will haveenjoy. Though our freedoms seem to be
billions of dollars invested to cover futureconstantly under attack, there is still no
medical expenses, and by then it will benation in the world that has the freedom of
politically impossible to take that benefitthe press, freedom of religion, freedom of
away.If you currently have a high-deductibleassociation, or the free markets that we have
health insurance plan, you can investin the United States. As anyone who
tax-free money in a Health Savings Account.understands even a smidgen of economics
You get to choose the type of investment -knows, free markets encourage competition and
anything from savings accounts or moneyinnovation, which lead to lower prices and
market funds, to a full brokerage house. Ifbetter quality.Though the U.S. system of
you invest wisely, you could have well overhealth care can not really be considered a
$500,000 in the account when you retire. You"free-market", it is certainly much more free
will be able to use that money to pay forthan any single payer system. Some of the
your healthcare in whatever way you please,benefits we see as a result of our current
tax free. You can go to the best surgeons,healthcare system include:- U.S. medicine
or the least expensive doc-in-a-box. If youproduces the best outcomes for virtually
decide to treat a condition with acupuncture,every patient, from premature babies to
homeopathy, or psychic healers, you can doelderly  cancer  patients.
that too. Whoever offers you the service you
want with the best combination of quality and- American companies are the chief source
price should get your business. And sinceworldwide of new treatments and procedures
you are the one paying, it will be completelywhich each year are used to save millions of
your choice. You have healthcare freedom.Iflives.
proponents of a single-payer system were to
ever have their way, you would be at the- U.S. medical training and research
mercy of a government bureaucrat when itfacilities are the best in the world.Though
comes to your healthcare. To see what thisCanadians might have to wait a year or two
may look like, all one has to do is look atfor hip replacement surgery, they can get the
the state of health care in Canada, England,same operation done on their dog in less than
New Zealand, and the parts of Europe thata week. This is because veterinarians are
have not yet abandoned single-payercompeting for that business, finding
systems.Proponents of a single-payer systeminnovative ways to deliver service more
tend to point to Canada or England asquickly and less expensively. Another
countries that cover all their citizens withexample is laser eye surgery, a procedure
quality healthcare, while spending less moneythat is rarely covered by insurance, so laser
per person than the U.S. But if we look aeye surgeons must compete on the basis of
little more closely, we see that thesecost and quality. While costs for most
publicly financed health insurance systemsmedical procedures have been going up every
are breaking down, the quality is low, andyear, the cost for this procedure has dropped
the costs can be quite high. Here's whatby 80% over the past decade.Unfortunately,
Canadians have to deal with if they needU.S. healthcare policies still tend to limit
medical care:Long waits. Hundreds ofcompetition, restrict consumer's freedom to
Canadians go to Detroit and other U.S. citieschoose, and discourage consumers from
every year for procedures like CAT scans,shopping for value. Thus, there are too few
which they can obtain treatment in a matterchoices and there has been little attention
of days. In Canada, the wait is typicallypaid to price and quality of service. The
six months. Currently 876,000 Canadians areanswer is clearly not more government
on waiting lists for medicalintervention, but instead letting competition
procedures.Difficulty in gettingand the power of the marketplace drive down
life-enhancing procedures done. If aprices and increase quality and access to
Canadian is having a heart attack, they willcare.Health Savings Accounts are the
be treated right then. But if the surgery isSolutionThere is increasing recognition that
considered "elective" (meaning that possiblethird-party health insurance payers are
death is not eminent), the wait could beactually a major cause of escalating medical
months or years. Average wait for cataractcosts and the decline in the quality of
removal is 18 months. Average wait for aservice. The increasing adoption of HSA
knee replacement is one year.Increased riskplans has already begun to cause greater
of dieing. The average Canadian waits eighttransparency and competition in the medical
weeks to see a specialist, and another ninemarketplace. There are now physicians
weeks before getting treated. This is evenavailable by phone, medical kiosks setting up
the case with conditions that are likely toin malls, doctors that accept only cash (and
get much worse if there is any delay inwho charge significantly less), and others
treatment. For example, the median time forcompeting directly for the consumer's
a mastectomy is 14 weeks, enough time for thehealthcare dollar.Don't be fooled by the
cancer to spread to other parts of the body.politicians who advocate a single-payer
In fact, 28% of those diagnosed with breastsystem, claiming their only concern is the
cancer in Canada die from it, while theuninsured. If a single body (such as a
mortality ratio in the U.S. is onlygovernment bureaucracy) controls healthcare,
25%.Things don't look any better across thethey control one seventh of the national
ocean. Each year the British National Healtheconomy. And everywhere in the world that
Service cancels 410,000 surgeries because ofcentral control of the economy has been
resource shortages. According to the Londontried, it has been a colossal failure.As
Sunday Times, there are currently over 1public policy reforms centered on individual
million Brits awaiting elective surgery.choice continue to gain wider footholds, the
Thomas Cook, a British travel agency, is evenresult will be greater prosperity, greater
considering offering "sun-and-surgery"choice, and a better value for all. The
packaged trips to Indian hospitals forculture of dependence and entitlement will
British citizens fed up with low standardsbegin to fade, as millions of individuals
and long waiting times for surgery.Thedemand further policy reforms that will
British and Canadian governments have thereinstate the values of freedom and personal
power to make healthcare "free", but they areresponsibility that helped establish this
unable to control its costs. So the costsgreat nation.As more consumers turn to health
become longer (and potentially fatal) delays,savings accounts, the market will respond.
and fewer innovations.It's not surprisingInnovative providers will begin to compete
when you think about what is happening.more on price and quality of service, and
Universal health insurance systems alwaysthose that provide the best value will get
encourage over-consumption by patients, andwealthy doing so. And all consumers will
such over-consumption always leads tobenefit.By Wiley Long - President, HSA for
financial crises. The result is inevitablyAmerica - HSA for America makes it easy to
broken promises about universal access andlearn about and set up a Health Savings
quality care. Because there are alwaysAccount (HSA) that best meets your needs.
limited resources, single-payer systems tendPlease link to this site when using this
to overspend on primary care for the healthy,article.



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