Healthcare:
It is the responsibility of elected leaders to protect the lives and liberty of every American citizen irrespective of their age or health condition. I firmly believe that the healthcare industry is in trouble. The cost of healthcare is skyrocketing. The solutions, however, are not easily within our grasp.  Who chooses to write the check is not the answer, as we full well know that all the money ends up coming out of our citizen’s pockets either way.  I do have a number of concerns regarding how we deal with healthcare.

We must protect the patient’s right to be in control and make their own decision regarding their medical care. No one should have control over your medical choices other than you, especially not the government.   We must protect the medical profession’s right to exist and to make wise decisions separate and apart from bureaucratic meddling.  Abusers of the healthcare industry must be stopped even when those abusers are government officials, patients, or the medical profession.  We need to protect all healthcare workers from becoming slaves to corporate control and manipulation. We need to allow more room for alternative medical practices to become available to those who choose to seek them. We need to find ways to reduce the high cost of malpractice insurance.

Concerns:

• Insurance companies should answer to the person insured and NOT the government or the employer. We need to be in control of our lives and not enslaved to our employers or our government.
• Nationality, race, religion, age, sex and disability are all areas where discrimination is not allowed. Yet the insurance companies are allowed to set differing rates on various groups.  Can you imagine going to the store to buy a book and finding that the price differs depending on who you are?   This must stop.  A particular  rate for a particular policy should be the same for all American citizens. (NOTE:  I AM NOT ADVOCATING  "GUARANTEED ISSUE, UNIVERSAL RATE HEALTH INSURANCE")
• Incentives for making healthy choices could be incorporated into certain policies to offer a reduced rate..
• People should be free to decide what type of healthcare they want, if any.  Freedom should not be sacrificed because of healthcare fears.
• The healthcare industry should not be indentured servants working for the public.  They have a right to offer their services at a competitive price.  But, when the healthcare industry becomes a monopoly that controls prices by controlling the industry, they should then be prosecuted. 
• Care must be taken to insure that insurance companies do not become a monopoly either.  Forcing people to have healthcare goes against our freedom of choice. Government should not be a strong arm forcing us to buy a product from an industry.
• Limiting the healthcare insurance industry from doing business in one  state but not in another causes problems when people wish to move to another state.  Thus I would support removing those restrictions and allowing insurance companies to compete nationally.
• Government should be forced to pay the same going rate for services that the private sector does.  This would end the hidden tax system where Medicare pays only 40 cents on the dollar, and we pick up the rest of the tab in higher healthcare costs.

Solution.

• Insurance companies should deal directly with the insured.
• Insurance companies should not be allowed to give group rates.  Fair trade and non discrimination laws should apply to insurance companies.  The rate set by the insurance company  for a particular plan should be the same rate for any American citizen who wishes to purchase that particular plan. As long as insurance companies understand the rules, they will set those rates accordingly.
• Employers who provide insurance to their employees could still help by setting aside individual accounts for each employee for healthcare, and they could use those funds to pay their insurance premiums.  This would help avoid employees spending those funds for non insurance purposes.  But the control of their insurance is still in the patient's hands.
• Insurance companies can offer multiple options and different priced policies, but any American should be allowed to participate in that plan if they so choose.
• There should be no restrictions as to who can partake of insurance.  This would eliminate forcing high risk patients out of the insurance program down the road.  If the insurance companies know up front that anyone can buy their insurance, they will set their rates accordingly.  That cost will be evenly distributed across the board.  Insurance companies can collectively insure those high risk patients so as to even out the costs  to their individual companies.
• Medical records should be easily accessible to the patient for oversight,  if they so wish.
• No deal making between the medical profession, suppliers, and insurance companies, which tend to promote abuse in providing care to the patient.  Promoting various drugs and treatments should not generate extra benefits to those in control. These type of incentives should be prosecuted.   Treatments should be determined on benefit to the patient only.  
• Illegal immigrants should not receive free medical care. 

Note: 

If we can clean up the abuse and greed in the system,  we will have accomplished much.  

There will always be the uninsured, those whose costs exceed their insurance coverage, the poor, and other unforeseen problems that will put a burden on the profession and the American people. But remember, these same problems exist today under the present system.  We must be careful  that we do not take away the freedoms and rights of the people in an effort to solve this common problem.  We must maintain the rights of individuals to choose their own healthcare.  The poor and needy will be with us always.    No matter what we do,  this cost will always be our responsibility.  In most cases, charity will cover this situation.