Originally Posted By: IdahoSH
It's a tangled mess. More tentacles than an octopus.

cost of education for the doctors
cost of R & D for pharmaceuticals
cost of products in the pharmaceuticals
cost of brick & mortar
cost of laboratory & testing equipment
cost of... it goes on

and then...
here comes the trial lawyers... sharks
every i & t have got to be dotted and crossed... or
causing & costing too many tests and procedures being performed
all of this only to cover one's butt and avoid staggering judgments or settlements

all of this calculates into and drives up the costs of insurance
what is the answer
you tell me


Um... you forgot a big one (intentionally?).

PROFITS

"In the first three quarters of 2011, the five largest publicly traded insurers reported their best three-quarter performance of the past decade, Bloomberg found. The companies' average operating margin widened to 8.65 percent in 2011, compared with 6.9 percent in the 18 months before the law was passed, surpassing Wall Street analysts’ expectations.

Profit margins for 2011 widened despite new and potentially costly requirements for private insurers under health care reform, such as making insurers accept children with preexisting conditions. Since the law was passed, coverage has remained stable, cost growth hasn't substantially accelerated, and profits show no signs of declining, Bloomberg found."