Most Businesses Oppose Insurance Mandates
April 27th, 2008 | by Brian T. Schwartz |So says a study by consulting firm Watson & Wyatt . The original press release from Watson & Wyatt Consulting is here . Some excerpts:
More than three-quarters (84 percent) of employers do not support a single-payer system such as universal health care coverage. Instead, 78 percent favor private-sector solutions, according to the 13th annual Watson Wyatt/National Business Group on Health report. The organizations surveyed 453 large U.S. employers between November 2007 and January 2008. …
“Despite their frustration with rising costs, employers believe they can do a better job managing costs and meeting the needs of their workers than the government can,” said Nussbaum [director of group and health care consulting in North America]. “In the last few years, companies have made considerable progress in increasing employee engagement in health care, through private-sector initiatives such as consumer-directed health plans and health savings accounts. Many feel they will be able to make even more headway in the future.”
And if you’ve heard about a survey that says most physicians allegedly support national health insurance, check out this debunking post by Greg Scandlen.
(via WeStandFirm.org)
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2 Responses to “Most Businesses Oppose Insurance Mandates”
By BuelahMan on Apr 28, 2008 | Reply
Let me tell you about my survey.
I have asked every health care professional I have encountered over the past 6 months and without a single example, they ALL would endorse a single payer, not-for-ptofit system that takes OUT all health insurance middle men, including HMO’s and the like.
ALL of them, without exception.
100% of at least 45 people.
Small, but totally encompassing.
By Brian T. Schwartz on Apr 28, 2008 | Reply
The results of such surveys, be they of physicians or employers, do not influence my view of what a moral health care policy should be. But my guess is that many people think about it this way: “Oh, I heard that most doctors recommend such & such government policy on health insurance or health care,” so I guess it’s a good idea. Since most people are irrational about politics (see here for explanation), their reasonings stops here.
Yet, I fail to see why someone with an advanced degree in medical science should be an authority on how governments can or cannot dictate on what terms doctors, patients, and insurance companies can deal with on another. I suspect people who believe this are exhibiting the cognitive bias called known as the halo effect. Regardless, nor am I a fan of allowing a majority of any group to command or prohibit relationships that are properly between patients, doctors, and insurance companies.