then surely the problem is with the government, and not private industry.
Yes, heathcare is a necessity (inelastic demand). This means that one company could charge as much as it wanted if it was the only company providing the service. However, if multiple companies are competing to sell you this service, they will try and undercut each other's prices in order to get your custom. It doesn't matter if you would buy the service irrespective of the price, since they are competing for your business, unless they work together to fix prices (again, doing so is illegal), the price you pay will drop.
Last time I was in Texas I developed an infection and needed to treat it with antibiotics. Yes, since I needed those antibiotics, they could have charged me hugely for them, however there is a law in Texas saying that once a patent for a drug has expired, the pharmacist is required to tell you of any generic drugs that are equivalent to the name brand no matter what your doctor prescribed. So, because of private industry competing to sell me medicine, I got the pills at a low price even though I would have paid a lot more for them. |
