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Healthcare - DonationBasedHealthCare - CooperativeHealthCare - old content moved to HealthCareArchive

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(summarization of discussion at Coworking Google Group your input here or there appreciated! :) )

Key points from DaveDoolin

• Coworking and related social experiments do not draw regulatory attention, yet: you can't get blood from a turnip. That is, there isn't enough money changing hands among people with enough assets to justify applying current tax code, develop new tax code, or audit. If coworking "takes off," the tax man will be at the door PDQ. This is sure as the sun rises in the east. Any "solution" that doesn't make sure the state gets paid is doomed.

• The black hat aspect of this is as driven by

large institutional investors (think, your pension

or 401 plan) as any nefarious scheme to screw

people out of their money. Having, say, $$$ in

a health care mutual fund or ETF provides a little

more perspective, as such an investor may well

recoup health care costs from one side on

the other side.

• IMO, The US tort system is the biggest risk factor

in health care. I'm neither for nor against large

torts, I can see arguments both ways, but either

way the risk of billion dollar torts is a part of

doing business. Any health care union will need

to have a plan for dealing with potentially

of large lawsuits.

• The capitalistic side of this equation is actually

broken, given the situation with medical schools

and legal prohibition against forming a health

care union. In a freer market, neither of these

prohibitions would be allowed.

• This last point concerning forming a union might

provide some serious leverage on the legislative

front, on both sides of congress. The dems will

be interested for obvious reasons, but strangely

enough, the more right repubs would back it because

it allows people more freedom for individual

initiative, with commensurate personal responsibility.

A win/win.

• Some points to consider for legislation... meeting

the following makes for a no-brainer bill:

1) Stirs up strong emotions in a large voting bloc. In this

case, almost every believes Something Must Be Done.

2) Almost impossible to articulate a good argument against it.

Who could argue against less expensive health care without

coming across as anti-consumer?

3) Relatively weak and unfunded opposition who rely only on making

logical arguments, but don't have a political war chest behind them to

give large contributions to Senators and members of Congress.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This is the hard one: the health care industry has some of the

most powerful backers existing.

4) Allows the proponents to easily score cheap, low-risk political

points. Politicians who oppose the bill on principle can be branded

as against consumers. In this case, opposition is ridiculous.

People can form credit unions for banking, but not health

care unions? Ridiculous.

5) NO DEBATE in Congress -- Both parties needing to

Do Something About Health Care, with the added benefit

of Republicans get "smaller government" out of it.

6) Revenue-neutral. All costs are thrown on the consumers.

Government bears little or no costs. Can this be done?

Almost certainly there will need to be some limited form

of regulation, to the same extent credit unions have at least.

Offer from DaveDoolin:

"Here is an offer: $150 donation to get a CA or

DE non-profit incorporated to formally explore

health care options for the coworking model.

CA does not charge 1st year franchise fee

($800), so this can be done reasonably

inexpensively."

Notes from SamRose - Quickest way to implement a solution

SamRose believes the quickest way to implement what DaveDoolin desribes above is to:

1. Create an equitable, legally sound model from the ground-up that gives people the legal right to create and self-govern health care cooperatives. This would effectively be a nationwide legislation proposal, since no current laws exist that accomplish this

2. Connect with potentially interested political action networks, like MoveOn.org, CommonCause, and any other. Offer solution as a package to networks, and work with networks to coordinate activists to lobby congress to change laws nationally. This is a tough proposition, but I believe these are the actual necassary steps to see this through (SamRose)

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