And what is Reich’s solution to [rising costs]? As he states at the beginning of the article, “Medicare offers a way to reduce these underlying costs—if Washington would let it.”

Well, Washington won’t let Medicare make such changes because it is filled with groups such as hospital and physician associations that have a vested interest in keeping a cash cow like Medicare largely the way it is. Those vested interests don’t care for the competition that would arise if Medicare started changing what it paid for.

Plus, why Medicare’s lower administrative costs is a silly argument, erroneous health care comparisons, why the sickest people will suffer under such a scheme, and more.