[nickik]

Markets are not responsible for insane health care regulation that restrict competition. Those exist locally and by state for insurances and providers. I could go on a whole list of all of these insane regulation that exist in the US. The US law going back to World War 2 that essentially forces people to get health insurance threw your employer is one one example of one of the dumbest ever laws and incredibly harmful to people.

The point is that everything that's outside of the regulated insurance market, such as plastic or lasik surgery and a whole list of other things are actually getting consistently cheaper while operations that are captured in a totally degenerate insurance market go the opposite direction.

We don't have many western countries that have ever even tried a more market style of health care. Singapore is the most market oriented system in the world and its by far the cheapest when looking at % of GDP.