Where To Find Health Care Savings; And Where You Wont

While the GOP can't quite figure out how to honestly attack Obamacare's multitude of problems (and they are legion), the death panel stuff clearly resonates and forces the Democrats to spend more time and effort defending.

It's a hack political trick, and it could work.

However, the Democrats will eventually get their act together and shift the focus elsewhere. At least, they'll try to do so.

In the meantime, the GOP has a couple lines of attack that not only provide legitimate alternatives to Obamacare, but raise serious questions over basic implementation and costs associated with Obamacare.

One of the best and easiest places to find health care savings comes from one place that is completely ignored by the Administration and Congressional Democrats. It deals with the fact that states prevent insurers from selling health insurance policies across state lines.

As I've repeatedly pointed out, states that prevent individuals from buying health insurance policies that are offered in other states necessarily limits choice, competition and increases the costs to the individuals. It means that policies that are expensive will come under pressure to reduce costs to be more competitive.

If you live in Kansas City, Missouri, you would have a different set of health insurance policies than if you lived in Kansas City, Kansas. Those differences are magnified with the insurance policies offered in Kansas City with New York City.

This, in short, is beneficial to the individual, who will have more options and more affordable choices.

Now, the Obama Administration has sought to generate cost savings from altering end-of-life decision making via voluntary choices.

Their problem is that they have to explain exactly how their end of life care suggestions will save money as they claim.

If this this supposed to be voluntary, where and how much will this save? After all, if this is voluntary, you're not going to get most people to consider alternative care options that reduce health care costs (hospice care vs. all available means for a terminal illness for example). Care will continue as it currently is, which undermines the cost-control efforts and claimed savings.

The GOP would be wise to shift this to cost - because it would get the fiscal conservatives and moderates on the ropes who want to see health care reformed to rethink the situation in terms of cost - honest costs, instead of wishful thinking as the Democrats repeatedly offer up on these entitlements.