More About Health Insurance Systems, Policies, Issues & Coverage

Part 1: The Basic Tools, Chapter 1: The Health Insurance Maze Page 9

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At times over the past few years, Americans have seemed convinced that only government intervention could provide a solution to health insurance problems. State and federal legislatures then began to pass laws -- and government agencies began to issue regulations -- to control the health insurance system. However, because of the existing philosophical debate, government efforts at regulation have often been criticized, and are generally limited.

For example, while there have been recent efforts in several states to guarantee the availability of individual health insurance policies to all citizens, regardless of existing illnesses or disabilities, the process was never completed. Equal access to health insurance was sometimes guaranteed, but at the same time the government allowed the free market system to deter mine premiums. The result is that while health insurance policies may officially be available to all individuals in some states, the premiums for such policies may be so high that they are out of the reach of many consumers.

At other times, the pendulum seems to swing in the opposite direction, away from government intervention. The government then begins to eliminate some of the existing laws and regulations in order to allow health insurers to operate in a free market setting. However, because of the continuing philosophical debate, some of the laws and regulations are left in place, making it difficult for the free market system to operate efficiently. Soon, if costs escalate and many consumers are left without health insurance coverage, there's a demand once again for new laws and new government regulations.

Thus, the cycle continues. There's a constant shift from one approach to the other, without giving either government regulation or the free market system a real opportunity to demonstrate its effectiveness. As a result, the health insurance maze becomes more complex as the years pass.

Recent proposals to reform the American health insurance system have focused a great deal of attention on health insurance issues. However, given the current philosophical debate, and the lack of effective solutions to existing problems, I don't think that consumers can depend either on the government or on the free market to solve the problems inherent in the health insurance system at this point. Thus, it's important that con sumers develop the tools they need to deal effectively with health insurance problems on their own.

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