"When someone else is paying, that is when medical care gets over-used," he writes. "Having someone else pay for medical care virtually guarantees that a lot more of it will be used. Nothing would lower costs more than having each patient pay those costs. And nothing is less likely to happen."
Actually, I think it is quite likely to happen. It's already happening, as more and more individuals and businesses can't handle the cost of first-dollar coverage and are switching to high-deductible plans or health savings accounts. And it may eventually happen for at least some of Medicare, too, because the alternative is letting health care costs devour the federal budget. For more, read Professor Battistella's book.
