Mr. Huffaker, I believe you miss the broader point here. Government health programs have a direct and fundamental impact on the cost of health care for society as a whole. Given the nature of government policy over the last 60 years or so, the public and "private" markets in health care are inextricably linked. You simply cannot address one without addressing the other. It would be like putting out the fire in the living room and assuming that the one in the kitchen would go out as well. Prior to 1965 (advent of the Medicare and Medicaid programs), US health care spending, as a percentage of GDP, never rose above 6%, we are now approaching the 17% mark. The Medicare program alone is responsible for more than half of this growth. For a more thorough study of the correllation between government health programs and cost increases I'd encourage you to check out the work of MIT's Amy Finkelstein, specifically "The Aggregate Effects of Health Insurance: Evidence From the Foundation of Medicare." Furthermore, most research, including that of the CBO, suggests that the cost saving possibilities of things such as health IT, preventative care and the like pale in comparison to the vast sums being discussed to "expand coverage." They are a pipe dream: increasing spending with the expectation of phantom savings. What the Obama program would produce instead would be expanded entitlement benefits stacked on top of an already insolvent system. THIS, would be like throwing gasoline on both fires and hoping for a miracle.

Mr. Huffaker, I believe you miss the broader point here. Government health programs have a direct and fundamental impact on the cost of health care for society as a whole. Given the nature of government policy over the last 60 years or so, the public and "private" markets in health care are inextricably linked. You simply cannot address one without addressing the other. It would be like putting out the fire in the living room and assuming that the one in the kitchen would go out as well. Prior to 1965 (advent of the Medicare and Medicaid programs), US health care spending, as a percentage of GDP, never rose above 6%, we are now approaching the 17% mark. The Medicare program alone is responsible for more than half of this growth. For a more thorough study of the correllation between government health programs and cost increases I'd encourage you to check out the work of MIT's Amy Finkelstein, specifically "The Aggregate Effects of Health Insurance: Evidence From the Foundation of Medicare." Furthermore, most research, including that of the CBO, suggests that the cost saving possibilities of things such as health IT, preventative care and the like pale in comparison to the vast sums being discussed to "expand coverage." They are a pipe dream: increasing spending with the expectation of phantom savings. What the Obama program would produce instead would be expanded entitlement benefits stacked on top of an already insolvent system. THIS, would be like throwing gasoline on both fires and hoping for a miracle.