This decade-long expansion of state protection for Blue Cross and underfinanced government health care has produced a massive exodus of commercial health insurers, and the collapse of a competitive health insurance market an unfair burden on healthy young families, who are forced to subsidize the health care costs of sicker older people even though the older people are in their peak earning years and have long since paid off their education loans and home mortgages. All of this has been accomplished under constant pressure from political leaders for the expansion of government health care, with the goal of creating a state single payer health system that is managed by political appointees, provides virtually free health care for all Vermonters who are below Medicare age and do not work for large employers, does away with private health insurance, puts the state in control of all health care providers, requires them to ration care to meet politically-determined budgets, and sends the bills for everyone's health care to the taxpayers. A sound reform of health care in Vermont, including a badly needed revival of a competitive health insurance market, should be based on these principles and policies. The primary responsibility for maintaining wellness and paying for health care rests with the informed individual and family, not with the government. Wellness can be significantly increased and demand for expensive health care can be significantly reduced if individuals are educated as to the personal health consequences of their choices, especially those relating to smoking, drinking, drug use, exercise, nutrition, and sexual activity.
Health insurance exists to protect individuals from unexpected occurrences.
First dollar or low deductible coverage leads directly to costly overutilization of health resources. Such coverage should be strongly discouraged. Individuals and families should be encouraged to create tax-favored medical savings accounts to pay for routine medical expenses. The legislature should repeal community rating. Insurance carriers ought to be allowed to distribute the cost of insurance fairly among recognized actuarial categories such as age, gender, geography, and occupations.