The Health Insurance Equation - Always a Negative Result

A conservative friend of mine popped up a question to me on Facebook:

Maybe you can answer this, Today it costs some $7k a year for a pretty comprehensive stand alone health insurance policy. Why can't the Feds and states pool their money and offer an insurance company $2,500 a head per year? We would reduce the cost and give everyone good care and just let insurance companies compete for the contract.

Here's my answer:

Hint: Because the insurance companies are the primary problem in the equation.

Just do the math:

First, take (x), the blanket antitrust exemption that health insurance companies enjoy (so, e.g., they can gobble up 90%+ of a state's health insurance market), which allows them to exercise abusive monopolistic practices without any fear of accountability.;

Then multiply by (y), the levying of up-front health insurance premiums for health insurance paid through businesses, which are able to shoulder obscene rate hikes year-over-year more easily than individuals (who would otherwise revolt);

And, finally, subtract (z), the inescapable and nefarious incentive to do as much as is legally possible to deny as much coverage, and quickly dump anyone that becomes sick from their paid-for insurance coverage based on a flimsy and transparent pretense, in order to maximize profits for their shareholders (which is made all the worse due to the fact that health insurance companies are shielded from civil liability from any claims based on denial of coverage).

Maths!

I really can't make it any plainer.

The clear and indisputable core business model of a "health" insurance company is to:

1. take in as much money in premiums as you can; then
2. deny as much coverage as you can.

It's that simple. We're talking basic profit principles, people.

The general construct is

PROFIT = REVENUES - EXPENSES

i.e.,

HEALTH INSURANCE PROFITS = PREMIUMS COLLECTED - (CLAIMS PAID - CLAIMS DENIED*)

So, yes, I hereby demand that we pump hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars into the coffers of the health insurance companies. Because, of course, they will simply just cover people and then pay for their claims when they're sick. RIGHT!?

Sigh...

* By "Claims Denied", I of course mean "People Killed".