Our Medical Industrial Complex is out of control, and we know it by looking at the cost of health care, drugs, health insurance, and hospital stays. The system is reaming us and there is nothing we can do about it. Adam Smith warned us about the risks of big business and industry approaching government in an incestuous relationship, and well, that’s exactly what happened.
All these problems did not happen overnight, call it a comedy of errors, or rather a comedy of corruption that has led us to where we are today. And, let’s not shoot the messenger here, rather spend a few minutes discussing all of this.
We see the growth of HMOs thanks to favorable laws created to help large campaign contributors. Then we saw industry consolidation. We saw HIPAA laws put smaller systems and hospitals out of business, unable to meet new mandates or afford huge computer systems. Why? Well, the Silicon Valley donors wanted to sell more enterprise software and hardware, and the major players in the hospital sector loved the idea, as it would provide more barriers to entry as the bigwigs grew and gained more political power.
The Industrial Medical Complex continued to grow when Bush II signed the Senior Drug Coverage Act into law. The Pharmaceutical Industry never had it better, the government became its best customer, one with unlimited funds.
The Obama administration introduced an “ObamaCare” plan that would essentially guarantee that anyone who could not afford health insurance would have the medical services or medicines they needed, FREE. Well it wasn’t free, remember almost all private insurance plans had a 200% increase in cost to pay for everyone free. It was amazing how many doctor visits, medical services and pharmaceutical drugs doctors and their patients could find on a ‘need’ basis.
Okay, these are just a few of the things that made the medical-industrial complex so powerful. Today, as the Corona virus is raging, we see hospitals complaining that they could be overrun and collapse because they don’t have enough protective gear, medical staff, or ventilators. It is claimed that they were not prepared for this Corona Virus or a similar race due to the need for ICU beds or ventilators. But why not?
These healthcare organizations have been overcharging us for decades, have plenty of money to buy what they need, and global supply chains. All of a sudden, they can’t handle a pandemic? Why do we need the industrial medical complex if it can’t work? Instead, they need help from the government. Do they want monetary support and the government to pay for their equipment and supplies? WHAT? Why?
Because supposedly they could never have anticipated such a global pandemic? Really, I mean, over the years I’ve read a lot of reports that say ‘it’s not if, but when’ a pandemic will hit us. Why didn’t they prepare, why didn’t they have provisions stored? Think how much money they have taken from clients, patients and clients? How much money have they received from the government for taking care of the health of the people, or how much have they soaked up from the health insurance companies that have passed on that cost, and more to all of us?
WHY?