Carson: Replace Obamacare with Health Savings Accounts

It sounds good, in theory...and if it was really that simple....don't you think it would have occurred before now? Obamacare has had 42+ attempts at repeals, and it still stands, so really his whole thought process is a pipe dream. Keep in mind, Obamacare cuts down on insurance companies being able to pick and choose what they cover, AND, it opens up coverage with those folks who have pre-existing conditions. If you take it away, sure, you might be able to pay with an HSA, however, healthcare providers will be able to go right back to the old ways and say, sure you might be able to pay for it all out of pocket, but we don't provide services due to X preexisting condition. So in effect, his plan does nothing...except for those who rarely use health insurance. Keep in mind, most HSA's as they are today, are a LOSING investment. Mine for example, doesn't carry over the amount of money I put in it from year to year. Example, last year, I put in 1200 dollars. I didn't end up needing eye care (glasses/contacts/eye exam) so I used only 400. At the end of the year, I lost 800 dollars. Now, march that out, year after year, per person. It's a flawed concept....simple as that.

HSA's might have a chance to work if every working person was required by law to give to it, like FICA. If it's voluntary then most people are going to spend the money on luxuries like rent, food and utilities.

From Wikipedia:

Singapore has a non-modified universal healthcare system where the government ensures affordability of healthcare within the public health system, largely through a system of compulsory savings, subsidies, and price controls. Singapore's system uses a combination of compulsory savings from payroll deductions to provide subsidies within a nationalised health insurance plan known as Medisave. Within Medisave, each citizen accumulates funds that are individually tracked, and such funds can be pooled within and across an entire extended family. The vast majority of Singapore citizens have substantial savings in this scheme. One of three levels of subsidy is chosen by the patient at the time of the healthcare episode.

A key principle of Singapore's national health scheme is that no medical service is provided free of charge, regardless of the level of subsidy, even within the public healthcare system. This mechanism is intended to reduce the over-utilisation of healthcare services, a phenomenon often seen in fully subsidised universal health insurance systems. ^{[ citation needed ]} Out-of-pocket charges vary considerably for each service and level of subsidy. At the highest level of subsidy, although each out-of-pocket expense is typically small, costs can accumulate and become substantial for patients and families. At the lowest level, the subsidy is in effect nonexistent, and patients are treated like private patients, even within the public system.

The increasingly large private sector provides care to those who are privately insured, foreign patients, or public patients who are able to afford what often amount to very large out-of-pocket payments above the levels provided by government subsidies.

Among other drawbacks

except for preventive care, which is generally covered at 100 percent and is not subject to the deductible, consumers in an HSA-qualified plan may be on the hook for the entire cost of medical care, including doctor visits, medications, tests and treatments, until they reach their deductible.

And you cannot use the money in the HSA to pay for your INSURANCE PREMIUM.

In order to get the tax advantages of a health savings account, the health plan it's linked to has to meet certain criteria. In 2013, for instance, an HSA-qualified plan has to have a deductible of at least $1,250 for single coverage and $2,500 for family coverage, and the maximum out-of-pocket limits can be no higher than $6,250 and $12,500, respectively, for single and family coverage.

To be an eligible individual and qualify for an HSA, you must meet the following requirements.

All this talk about the singpore model....seems to me folks are forgetting on thing. In the US, we as a society are the most unhealthy, look at how many obese people there are. Also, in other countries, like the UK, they don't have the bureaucracy that we have. This is evidenced by the cost pharma companies charge here, as opposed to there. We let lobbyists dictate for the pharma companies, in the UK, they tell them, no. If it costs 3 dollars to make a pill, they allow a SMALL profit to be made...unlike here, where pharma companies make hundreds of thousands if not millions. Why? Simple, because pharma companies are allowed. As far as HSA's and say singapore, it's funny how many people advocate that type (some might say communistic governing) of healthcare/government, while at the same time calling obama a socialist. Hypocritical much??