Is government run health care going to work for this country or will it turn out to be another financial disaster like the sub-prime mortgage industry?

Most economists agree that one of the driving factors to the financial crisis the US is facing right now stems from the improper lending practices of government controlled and now government owned mortgage backers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

By forcing the lending institutions to provide mortgages to those who may have not been the best candidates led to the ultimate downfall of the mortgage industry and US markets as we once knew it. When the government says don't worry and that they can help everyone and will back it up by guaranteeing the note, the banks don't have anything to worry about right? Well we all know that was wrong now and it will also be in the future.

The US government in it's ultimate wisdom tried to help the minority and ended up costing the majority in the end. You see the government does not understand risk factors and underwriting risk until they have to start writing checks (with tax payers money) for bad loans which they said all along were ok, they would back them, and to continue on. Only a business with their own money on the line and stockholders to answer to will truly understand risk factors.

Don't buy this? Check out the congressional hearing from the past several years leading up to where we are now.

Now how does health care compare to this and how could it end up with the same result?

Well many in the US government think that health insurance should not be a business. In other words why should a business make money off someones health?

The other side of this is:

Why should a funeral home make money off someones death? That's not very fair.

Why should a mechanic make money off fixing someone's car that broke and it wasn't their fault? This also doesn't seem fair.

Why should a Doctor or hospital profit from keeping someone alive?

Answer: The US was built around free markets, free enterprise, and Capitalism.

Since the passage of the Kennedy/Kassebaum bill in 1997 the government has been placing underwriting restrictions, limiting the amount the health insurance companies can charge in premiums, mandating how they cover lifestyle events, etc. This has done nothing but drive up premiums throughout the entire country and cause many, many more to be uninsured. In 1997 we had a health care problem which the government helped turn into the crisis we have today. Every time they get involved it gets worse not better.

Don't believe this either? Check out health insurance premiums in the most government regulated states like: Vermont, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. You will find premiums in those states to be as much as double for similar coverage in other states.

Moving into 2010 the new administration in an effort to once again help everyone, does not want the health insurance companies to run a business any longer. They quite simply want to turn it into a charity event. The restrictions we will now see will be even more extreme than we saw in 1997. The current administration does not want the health insurance companies to factor in such risk categories like: health status, age, or geographic location. However any actuary will tell you these are three of the most important factors to underwriting risk for health insurance on a government program, or in the private sector.

There is one big difference. The government will NOT be backing the bad underwriting decisions the health insurance companies will be forced to make if they want to stay in business. I guess the government did learn one thing from Freddie and Fannie.

Can the US now handle the collapse of the health insurance industry in addition to the banks, car manufactures, and one large life insurance company (who invested in Freddie and Fannie) already?

Should we continue to help the minority or hurt the majority?

Maybe this is the intent of the new administration to make it so difficult to do business (like they have been doing) they will just take it over like they did the rest of these failing industries and ultimately make it worse.