Hello, Dr. Keith Smith you on behalf of the Surgery Center of Oklahoma, thank you for joining me.

Let’s continue our discussion of the insurance coverage of pre-existing conditions.

I think that the insurance companies benefit from this focus on pre-existing conditions, just from this being a discussion. After all, the problem with medical care delivery in the United States is not so much with the coverage, but with the cost of the actual care.

Sure, your insurance is unaffordable now thanks to Obamacare, but the problem originally was that the cost of medical care was unaffordable. I would argue also, that it was because of intrusions by the federal government and how that has interfered with the free market.

Let me say this again: the focus should be on the cost. Anytime there is a distracting discussion like insurance coverage of pre-existing conditions, we are all downstream of this flawed premise where we think that everyone needs coverage. Like the folks in Canada, who all have coverage, but many of whom can’t achieve access that many of them do require.

Let’s keep our eye on the ball and focus on the cost of medical care delivery in the United States and not pay so much attention to these distracting coverage arguments, the beneficiaries of which are those who sell this coverage.

Thank you for joining me, we’ll see you next time.