By Mary O’Connor (LPMN Treasurer and former candidate)
Health insurance is one big reason health care is so expensive. We should not need insurance to go to the doctor. Health insurance should only be needed for expensive medical procedures. To begin lowering the cost of ordinary health care we need to eliminate most employer health benefits and increase the employees’ salaries. Employer health benefits should be reduced to major medical only; that is, expensive medical procedures only. Each employee should be given an increase in pay which they can use to pay for doctor and clinic visits. Doctors and clinics will reduce their fees when they don’t have to involve insurance companies to get paid. Congress needs to start this process with themselves and other federal employees. Then states, cities, counties, school districts and private employers will be encouraged to do the same and the cost of health care will come down.