KRWG-TV broadcasts this week’s KOB debate in New Mexico’s U.S. Senate race on Friday at 8 p.m.
The candidates’ views on healthcare may tell voters a lot about their political philosophy.
Republican Mark Ronchetti’s line of attack against Congressman Ben Ray Luján has been repeated in races nationwide for years. In attacking Luján’s support of a single-payer healthcare system, Ronchetti says it would be too expensive and wouldn’t solve the problem.
“Well, when has a government program ever saved people money in this particular case? So Congressman, what you advocate for, unfortunately, is a government takeover of the healthcare system.”
In the same answer, Ronchetti pledged support for Medicare and Medicaid, big parts of the U.S. healthcare system tied to federal and state government.
Lost in the debate, the numbers. The Commonwealth Fund notes the “U.S. spends more on health care as a share of the economy — nearly twice as much as the average OECD country — yet has the lowest life expectancy and highest suicide rates among the 11 nations.”
And, “compared to peer nations, the U.S. has among the highest number of hospitalizations from preventable causes and the highest rate of avoidable deaths.”
But Ronchetti says government care is not the answer, even saying there’s a way to reduce costs in our private, for-profit system.
“We can drive down prescription drug costs. We can get people better access to the care they need for cheaper. But it’s not going to be because the government swallows it up. It’s going be because the people have choice.”
Learn more: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report on healthcare costs.
In fact, government-run healthcare systems can dramatically reduce costs due to low administrative expenses, no profits, and enormous buying power that allows for lower negotiated prices.
Let’s use Ronchetti’s example of prescription drugs. A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association estimated a 38 to 50 percent savings on drugs if Medicare’s prescription drug benefit used prices provided to the Veterans Administration. The VA negotiates prices, while Medicare Part-D and its large number of different private insurers do not.
Even if those insurers could negotiate prices, the large number of companies would not allow for the buying power of VA and just as in other private insurance, administrative costs tend to be higher due to profits, marketing and other expenses.
Libertarian candidate Bob Walsh also spoke out against government-provided healthcare, specifically describing it as part of his party’s political philosophy.
“Libertarians believe that we should have a free market in healthcare. That everyone should be able to choose the level of insurance they want, the doctors they want, and the treatments they want.”
While the approach Walsh described could theoretically reduce costs, it wouldn’t work in our current system. People without the funds for healthcare couldn’t access the free market. And people who were underinsured in the free market might get care anyway, raising costs of those with better plans. In fact, a report by the American Hospital Association shows hospitals provided more than $660 billion dollars in uncompensated care over the last two decades alone.
And the for-profit system costs individuals too. Even with the expansion of government support under the Affordable Care Act, one study found some 530,000 American families file for bankruptcy each year due to medical expenses. The American Public Journal of Health also cites job losses in its study, a reminder that tying health insurance to a job is also part of the reason medical bills are still the number one source of bankruptcy filings in the country. A problem that is expected to get worse with long-term job losses caused by the pandemic.
But bankruptcy also happens to those who are insured, due to co-pays and deductibles. And that problem could increase, because the Trump administration now allows insurance companies to sell cheaper policies for up to three years that do not provide coverage mandated under the Affordable Care Act.
Congressman Ben Ray Luján says eliminating costs for individuals is one reason he’s supported a single-payer plan.
“For people, it would mean no deductibles and no premiums.
And look, let’s just face this, the United States is investing more in healthcare than any other industrialized nation, but people aren’t getting the support that they need. And that’s why I’m open to ideas that will drive down the cost of healthcare. It’s why I’ve been such a proud supporter of the Affordable Care Act.”
And now, even the Affordable Care Act is at risk. Right after the election, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a challenge to its constitutionality.