Brian T. Schwartz: Bizarro Health Care “Reform”: Expect Less, Pay More

"Mandatory insurance is a second path towards complete government-controlled insurance. Massachusetts has imposed this on its citizens, and they are learning to expect less. 'Long wait times for appointments for new patients continue to be a problem, resulting in delayed access and care,' reports the Massachusetts Medical Society. 'With our state health reform initiative,' said the society’s president, 'we quickly learned that universal coverage doesn’t equate to universal access.'

"With mandatory insurance, also expect less value from your insurance policy because politicians can make your current plan illegal. But you’ll pay more. A Cato Institute study concludes that 'any politically plausible mandate could … compel close to 100 million Americans to switch to a more comprehensive health plan with higher premiums, whether they value the added coverage or not.'

"Affordable plans become illegal because politicians cave to interest groups who want to force everyone to buy insurance with costly benefits that they may not want. In Massachusetts, such 'mandates are helping to drive up costs, making coverage unaffordable as many businesses and workers struggle,' reports the Boston Globe. Premium rates in Massachusetts are increasing at almost twice the average national rate. With nationwide mandatory insurance, we’ll all be paying more."