Insights, Issues & Istook

Lots of people getting Obamacare say they still cannot afford health care. A liberal group reports that one-fourth of people covered by Obamacare still avoid seeing a doctor or having tests done because they cannot afford the deductibles or co-pays. That shows how bureaucratic the law is, because even after raising insurance premiums it also raises other out-of-pocket costs. To the left, that's a reason to abolish co-pays. But look closer. Almost every political proposal does nothing about the real problem—that health care costs too much. Sending the bills to government does not make anything more affordable; it only shifts who pays, namely taxpayers. Health care and insurance cost so much because the government controls them with a mountain of red tape. That doesn't improve care; it just adds to the costs. Obamacare created thousands more pages of regulations; red tape makes things more expensive, not more affordable.