Our healthcare system is unique for all the wrong reasons. It is confusing, dysfunctional, difficult to navigate, and most of all, costly. Despite repeated efforts by lawmakers to lower costs and increase access to care, millions of Americans still struggle to find health insurance that is both affordable and meets their needs.
These failures require us to rethink the structure and delivery of health insurance and healthcare in the United States. Some believe they can solve the problem by raising taxes for most Americans and entrusting healthcare to the government. However, a one-size-fits-all, government-run healthcare system offers Americans very little of what they want. Indeed, such a proposal would disrupt the existing coverage arrangements of nearly all Americans, strip people of their right to make personal healthcare decisions with their doctor, and close nearly every remaining private practice in the country.
Fortunately, there is an alternative — a personalized healthcare system. One built around families, not the government, and that puts patients in charge of deciding how their own healthcare dollars are spent. Instead of relying on government bureaucrats, this approach drives down costs and improves quality by encouraging insurers and providers to compete for patients’ dollars.
The Singapore “Medisave” program, a system of personal medical savings accounts, stands out as an effective model for what a personalized healthcare system should resemble. Established to give families more control over their healthcare spending, the Medisave program allows every resident to set aside a share of their earnings tax-free for the purpose of covering a portion of their medical expenses. For over 35 years, these accounts have proven to not only reduce wasteful government spending but also improve the health of Singapore residents.
If we truly want to make healthcare personal, we need to simplify our own system here in the U.S. and offer every individual the freedom to save and spend their healthcare dollars as they see fit. That’s why I introduced the Family First Medisave Empowerment Act, which offers a personal medical savings, or Medisave, account to every American and their family with the goal of helping more families save and pay for their care tax-free.
As personally owned accounts that are no longer tied exclusively to employers, a Medisave account would support financially stressed families and ensure they retain ownership of their benefits regardless of their employment status. Furthermore, Medisave accounts would provide American families an unprecedented level of choice and control over their own healthcare. By expanding upon the Health and Human Services HRA rule, Americans would be permitted to use their accounts towards the purchase of any type of insurance from their employer, their spouse’s employer, or the health insurance marketplace. Additionally, it would treat direct primary-care arrangements as a qualified expense, allowing patients to visit the doctor of their choice at an affordable monthly fee.
Critical to the success of the Medisave program is ensuring every family, no matter their income level, can control their healthcare spending. One of the principal reasons Singapore’s program has been so successful is that the government supports its poorest citizens while still incentivizing them to climb up the ladder of success. Similarly, my bill would offer direct financial assistance to low-income individuals and families, providing a safety net to those who otherwise cannot afford to put money aside. Instead of spending billions to subsidize health insurers, it refocuses those dollars and converts them into targeted Medisave distributions that will allow the poorest among us to have adequate healthcare access and coverage.
I believe that by putting the focus of our healthcare system back on the family, we can chart a path forward that will lower costs, expand choices, and improve the delivery of benefits to those that need them the most. My bill is just a small piece of the puzzle. Effective reforms that spur competition among local providers and equip consumers with the tools they need to compare healthcare prices are also badly needed. But I believe it can go a long way towards empowering families to make smarter healthcare decisions and offer the financial security they need to thrive in the 21st-century economy. Those are goals we can all share.
U.S. Rep. Anthony Gonzalez represents Ohio’s 16th District in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is the son and grandson of Cuban immigrants, a former Ohio State and Indianapolis Colts wide receiver, and a Stanford Business School graduate.
