Many people are ambivalent about insurance plans. They help with the costs of medical care, but often they limit choices, requiring policyholders to see doctors who are contracted with the plan or to forgo treatment that a doctor might recommend but the insurer deems unnecessary.
It’s a well-established truth that competition in any market helps ensure better value. Competing providers, whether they offer products or services, feel market pressures to provide the best quality possible at the best price possible.
Most consumers know this, and that is why so many chafe at the limitations they face in the realm of health care — the very issue on which they might depend to live longer and healthier lives. Often it’s felt more acutely in border areas such as the Rio Grande Valley, where many people find adequate care right across the border. In fact, some towns such as Nuevo Progreso are built upon their reputations for providing quality medical care at reduced rates, often even lower than medical plan copays and reimbursements.
News that some local entities including Cameron County are allowing such options to the people they cover. County commissioners last month enrolled in a health insurance plan that allows county employees to go to Mexico for their medical needs, in many cases without copays or other routine charges.
The state of Florida is trying to offer a similar benefit to people who are receiving public benefits such as Medicare and Medicaid. The state has requested federal approval to seek lower-cost drugs in Canada, and has filed a lawsuit because it hasn’t received that approval.
We don’t know if the delay is an effort to keep drug purchases within the United States or if it’s just the slow pace of bureaucracy, but allowing the option would save taxpayers money — money that could fund other needed programs or lower tax rates — and any delay keeps those savings from being realized.
In fact, Texas should explore the benefits of seeking similar access to Mexico’s prescription drug market for possible savings.
To be sure, the idea of buying American is a popular one, and many people prefer domestic offerings because U.S. companies’ reputation for quality — especially with regard to healthcare options — provides a feeling of confidence that they believe is worth the cost.
Many Valley residents, however, have visited doctors and pharmacies across the border for years and have just as much confidence in those providers. After all, free market pressures to offer high quality and competitive prices are just as strong in other countries as they are here.
Most taxpayers want their government offices to be as frugal as possible with their money, and surely support the idea of seeking the most cost-effective healthcare options possible, even if they extend beyond our own borders.
Giving people more options can help Americans attain the most cost-effective healthcare benefits possible. Looking at all medical options, even beyond our borders, should be encouraged, not resisted.
