Re: lolwut?

I'm not sure about the original plan being a thing of beauty ... but as much as I do not want government getting into health care, I would prefer a single payer model to this monstrosity.

However, "one of the worst healthcare systems on the planet" is a bit of an overstatement, even if you only mean the first world nations. There's a reason why people from all over the world come to the United States to get the best health care possible. While a few countries (notably Japan, in my experience) seem to provide better quality care at lower cost than the United States, many countries are able to pay less because the system in the United States has been funding research and development in the medical field for the whole world.

In consequence, I think it would be wise to keep a good chunk of the medical industry private, even if we had a single payer model for basic care. The private portion could be funded by supplemental insurance or simply by rich people willing to pay for extras - but that funding is necessary if we hope to continue the medical research and development that could change the world for the better.

Four things would be most useful to lowering the cost of the American system: computerization of patient information, simplification and standardization of paperwork, ending the doctor's monopoly on access to prescription drugs, and ending the restrictions on the number of doctors.

On this last point, it should be noted that the artificial restrictions on the number of doctors, which include limited slots in medical schools and a culture of hazing that keeps many interested persons from entering the field, are a chief stumbling block to lower medical costs in the U.S. Low supply + High demand = High prices. Japan makes it easy to become a doctor and difficult to become a lawyer - and in a country where everything else costs two or three times what it does in the U.S., high quality medical care is a bargain.