The Bull in the E.R.

There's a bull in the china shop we call Health Care, and most pundits are studiously avoiding glancing at it. But if it is not controlled, it will bring the whole system, in any form, crashing down. The real problem with the health industry is...

SKYROCKETING COSTS!

Who's to blame? EVERYONE!
We can't just pin the blame on the insurance companies. There is plenty of blame to go around.
Consider the major players in the industry:

Doctors: they like getting paid as much as possible.

Insurers: They try to reduce costs, but get to be the "bad guy" as a result.

Medical Industry: newer drugs = high prices = more profit.

Consumer: They just pay their set "co-payment" which is the same no matter how much the drug or procedure costs.

Lawyers: Yes, we need tort reform too, but I don't know what form it would take.

Who is trying to keep costs down? Only the "evil" insurance companies, and they face pressure from millions of consumers complaining, "but I NEED my viagra!"

What if all those millions of consumers had to face the fact that some things cost more than other things? Imagine millions of consumers asking their doctor for cheaper alternatives. Imagine drug companies not being able to sell the latest and greatest drug because doctors are taking the time to check and realizing it doesn't work any better than last year's drug which is a tenth of the price.

That could happen if consumers paid a (perhaps small, but not zero) percentage of the actual cost of the drug instead of a flat co-pay.

A small change in the way consumers pay for their drug could put enormous pressure on the industry to reduce costs. The percentage could be chosen so the average consumer pays about the same as they do now on flat co-payments, but now they would an opportunity to reduce that cost. Those who end up paying more have more incentive to talk to their doctors about finding cheaper alternatives.