Health care: How to make universal care pencil out

“Are insurance carriers just trying to play it safe,” (TNT, 7/18).

Regence Insurance seeks an average premium increase of 30 percent because the market is uncertain. Regence has a $1.1 billion surplus to cushion its angst. People facing denial of coverage or unpayable premiums should have it so good.

Regence intends to stop offering individual coverage, which creates another uncertainty.

A solution may be found in the marriage of universal health care and tort reform.

Coverage of preexisting conditions is a given with universal health care. Tort reform advocates seek caps on general damages, not on awards for future or past medical costs. Nor do they seek to cap awards for past wages or future lost wages. Those are usually simple disputes between experts with calculators.

The possibility of skyrocketing future medical costs often drives lawsuits. Universal health care takes those costs out of jury consideration. With less at risk, medical premiums should go down.

With single payer care, taxes will increase, but that will be offset by not paying premiums into an insurance company’s surplus fund.

The Affordable Care Act began the path to single-payer care. We should continue on. The assurance of care is worth accepting a cap on general damages.

This story was originally published July 28, 2017 at 5:34 PM with the headline "Health care: How to make universal care pencil out."