Health Care Mythology

Cliff Asness on the current myths surrounding healthcare in the US:

What We Know That Ain’t So

Will Rogers[1] famously said, “It isn't what we don't know that gives us trouble, it's what we know that ain't so.” So it is with the health care debate in this country. Quite a few “facts” offered to the public as truth are simply wrong and often intentionally misleading. It seems clear that no truly productive solution will emerge when these false facts represent our common starting point. So, this essay takes on the modest task of simply disabusing its readers of some untrue notions about health care.

I do not take on the harder task of prescribing how we should (and if we should) reform health care, though I offer a few thoughts. Important work must be done here by those who understand, far better than I, the details of health care provision. However, no details are necessary for this essay, and no animals (though perhaps some egos) were harmed in its creation. The fallacies I present are basic and it takes only a rational economic framework to expose them

There are large groups of people in this country who want socialized medicine and they sense that the stars are aligning, and now is their time to succeed. They rarely call it socialized medicine, but instead “single payer health care” or “universal coverage” or something that their public relations people have told them sounds better. Whatever they call it, they believe (or pretend to believe) a lot of wrong‑headed things, and they must be stopped. Step one is understanding how and why they are wrong. Step two is kicking their asses back to Cuba where they can get in line with Michael Moore for their free gastric bypasses.

Follow the link for the entire piece.

If you want to report him to the Whitehouse, Cliff also provides the following email, so you don't have to compose one yourself:

From: StumblingOnTruth Comments

Sent: Monday, August 10, 2009 11:54 AM

To: 'flag@whitehouse.gov'

Cc: 'flagmeobama@gmail.com'

Subject: Flag me! I.e., please put me on your Orwellian totalitarian watch-list as one vigorously opposed to your socialist takeover of health care (as one example of many). Others interested in sending similar emails please see http://flagmeobama.com/

Importance: High

Dear Leader and Minions,

The only thing more un-American, anti-freedom, and hypocritical from this administration, that dared to campaign on the prior administration's respect of the constitution, than your attempt to socialize vast swaths of the American economy, is your new attempt to silence your legitimate critics. You have (collectively with your party) called them Nazis, you have lied about their generally peaceful demonstrations while ignoring the incredible hypocrisy of your own brown-shirt like efforts (New Black panther thugs let off the hook by Holder, Code Pink, SEIU and ACORN vigorously disrupting free speech; and just try to give a speech offending the Left on our academically "free" campuses?). Now this explicit effort to have Americans, who happen to disagree with the current people in charge, inform on other Americans to this email address. You all have no shame.

Is anything more certain than if Bush called for this fascist surveillance that the liberal press from the New York Times to the network news to a smirking Jon Stewart (for about 3 weeks straight along with out of context clips) would have skewered him at witch-burning levels even they had not reached, and congressional democrats would have been so apoplectic you'd have seen Nancy Pelosi's face move? Bush asked to have DANGEROUS behavior reported, not dissenting behavior, and you all wanted him impeached.

So, I am a small fish, but a few thousand people read and commented on this essay I've attached a link to (www.stumblingontruth.com). And I've copied them all.

Please print the essay. Read it and learn something and stop your attempted coup d'etat of our free system that will lead to pain and suffering for all the people, but power for yourselves, so I understand giving it up may be tough for you.

If not convinced, roll up the essay, stick it where the collectivist sun does not shine, and then put your name on the waiting list to see the government provided "free" proctologist in 6-12 months. It will give you some small insight into how the American tax-payer feels.

The existence of this monitoring and “informing on thy neighbor” effort is embarrassing to America.

Mr. Obama, tear down this firewall (firewall makes no sense here but the pentameter is beautiful and it's vaguely related to the internet).

- Cliff Asness