With America’s healthcare system failing, it’s time for fresh thinking

By Ryan Gonzalez

There is no simple solution to fix our broken healthcare system. In America, it’s expensive and costly, especially for our most vulnerable and underserved communities. 

For years, I have been thinking of ideas on how to solve this very difficult issue. Given its complexity, it requires help from both the state and federal level. But we must include the private sector in these discussions. Subsidizing healthcare does nothing to solve or address the root cause of skyrocketing healthcare. I’ve made my suggestions open and addressed them with Congressman Gabe Evans as well as insurance companies.

First, the fact that we don’t even make our prescription drugs in the U.S. is a big problem. We continue to offshore jobs and support the [Chinese Communist Party] CCP as we get our drugs from them. We must bring those jobs back and make our own prescription drugs here. 

Second, let’s eliminate state lines to buy health insurance. Increasing competition will lead to better coverage options and more competitive premiums. 

Why can’t we customize our health insurance like we do for car insurance? We deserve more options for healthcare coverage.

When we get private insurance, we are only allowed to insure spouses and children. Why not expand to more family? I’ve seen the way some health professionals treat Medicaid patients, my mother is one of them. I am outraged that I, as one who has private insurance, cannot insure her. Let us insure our parents, our siblings, grandparents, nieces and nephews, and cousins. 

While the argument can be made about higher premiums, I’m sure people like me wouldn’t care what we have to pay as long as our loved ones get the treatment they need. Not only would our loved ones get better care, we’d pull them off of Medicaid and Medicare which would save the state hundreds of billions of dollars in the long run.

Currently, in the Colorado legislature there is a fight on balancing the budget and one of the requests, primarily from Governor Jared Polis is to cut the Medicaid reimbursement rates. At a time when people are struggling and our hospitals, especially our rural hospitals, are short on funding we cannot afford to shut the doors to our most vulnerable. 

Again, we don’t bring the private sector to the table to help us make decisions. The state cannot afford to take everything on its own. But statism runs rampant in the Colorado legislature. This is a disaster in the making. We’ve already seen some insurance companies begin to pull out of Colorado.

We simply have too much red tape in our healthcare industry. We must slash regulations and move towards a free market approach in our healthcare. 

I believe in trade. For example, if an HVAC contractor needs a surgery, why can’t he trade the doctor a surgery for a new furnace? An agreement between the two parties to exchange goods and services would also help get people the access they need. 

Our system is not sustainable and we will see the impacts which affect those that are most in need: Our seniors on fixed income, our low income citizens and children. We need to fix our healthcare system and we need to fix it now.

Rep. Ryan Gonzalez represents Colorado House District 50

_{*The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of HealthPlatform.News.}