That’s Yale University’s estimate of the savings from single-payer, Medicare for All.
And the cost in blood and treasure of a health system optimized for Private Equity.
{{ We update our previous analyses with the most recent data to project the economic benefits and the number of lives saved that would be achieved by single-payer universal coverage, as proposed in the Medicare for All Act. We estimate that such a system would reduce national health expenditure by $1,041 billion annually. Sources of savings include reductions in administrative overhead, pharmaceutical prices, fraudulent billing, and avoidable emergency care. Combined with the reversal of recent retractions, universal coverage would save over 114,000 lives annually. }}
Moving to SP is easy when you hand-wave the difficulty of achieving the following:
Four adjustments reduce national expenditure. Hospital and clinical fees are paid at Medicare reimbursement rates, which are below the rates paid by commercial insurers and above those paid by Medicaid. Pharmaceutical prices are reduced through international reference pricing, applying the 51% reduction13 achieved by benchmarking US prices to those paid in comparable high-income countries.
Hawkwin
Who thinks we could save $2T if we paid Medicaid rates instead of Medicare rates…
States face balance budget requirements that cause them to sharpen the pencil on expenditures more so than federally administered solutions like Medicare. I guess if you plan to introduce that constraint, it certainly would get bureaucrats more mindful of costs.
Canada has definitely reduced ER care under its healthcare system. More than 1 million annually simply forgo a visit because of wait times that can exceed 24 hours to even obtain treatment. In addition, specialist care services are limited. Many are now closed to new patients. It further puts stress on ER services.
UK current wait times for medical care are at historic highs. As @Divitias pointed out, citizen’s are now engaging in increased self dentistry rather than wait for long periods for treatment.
Russia’s system is a little more creative. There are customary bribes paid to access the best doctors and shorten delays.
I’d be careful to discount what we have in terms of care and services in looking for the next Utopia of medical care and coverage.
We could look at Switzerland’s approach. But, for those looking for a freebie, you are required to purchase private insurance. There are low wait times and high satisfaction with the quality of care. It does come at a cost. As a % of GDP, they are 2nd by the US.
Rather than Medicare for all we should do Veterans care for all. Much more affordable. You see the dr on duty, are treated in a ward rather than private room, and all meds etc are at negotiated prices. A better deal for all and quality health care to the needy.
Yet Canadians live about 3 years longer than we do, for less than half the cost. I see very few Canadians repeating US conservative talking points when describing their health care.
You’re making assumptions about the cause of LE’s differentials that may not be accurate. The reason for the differential in life expectancy may be more lifestyle related. I’m open to exploring the data at more granular level rather than simply making assumptions.
Of course, the counter argument is that additional access care would bring with it better accountability. Possibly, but if that’s case, why after the expansion of Medicaid are life expectancies still decreasing in the US?
That’s what the numbers say. Of course, we’d have to examine what is covered under ours vs their system, consumption rates, geographical differences that might impact the cost, and structural costs, although the cost of living there is pretty high.
The key may be a system that makes the consumer a stakeholder but certainly worth examining. Of course, it is a country of 9 million people that is smaller than the state of West Virginia.
Life expectancy is higher on the Canadian side in Niagara Region (roughly 79.2 years for males and 83.5 years for females compared to the U.S. side in Niagara County, New York (averaging about 76.2 to 77.3 years overall).
We find a reduction in all-cause mortality in ages 20 to 64 equaling 11.36 deaths per 100,000 individuals, a 3.6 percent decrease. This estimate is largely driven by reductions in mortality in counties with higher pre-expansion uninsured rates and for causes of death likely to be influenced by access to healthcare. A cost-benefit analysis shows that the improvement in welfare due to mortality responses may offset the entire net-of-transfers expenditure associated with the expansion.
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We find evidence of a reduction in mortality following the ACA Medicaid expansion, with the strongest results for amenable causes of death, those most likely to have been averted through optimal quality healthcare.
I stand corrected. It declined and then rebounded after 2022. A whopping 1/2 year gain.
The US Niagara Region (Niagara County, New York) experiences a higher youth mortality rate than the Canadian Niagara Region (Niagara Regional Municipality, Ontario).