America’s healthcare is inarguably superior to other nations' socialized systems, wherein patients are forced to wait months to be admitted for routine surgeries and hospital treatments. But it has plenty of problems of its own, including soaring costs, very little transparency in pricing, and shrinking access to trusted doctors and treatments. The result is that few people feel they have the choices they deserve when it comes to care. As many as 44% say that they actively avoid seeking care because it’s too complicated and expensive.

There are several solutions to this problem, each of which the Washington Examiner will explore in-depth this week. Our policy series will highlight the work of experts and scholars from leading organizations, such as Stand Together, the Heritage Foundation, the Independent Women’s Forum, the State Policy Network, and the American Enterprise Institute, and feature the perspectives of acting physicians and healthcare professionals.

The offered solutions vary, but most could be part of a “Personal Option” — reforms that would put patients back in control of their care and coverage. Patients, not insurance companies or government bureaucrats, should have the power to choose the doctors they see and the insurance plans that fit their financial needs. 

One sensible reform would be to let workers have portable, personal insurance plans separate from their employers. There is no reason why workers’ insurance should change when they move jobs. In fact, the healthcare system’s dependence on employer benefits is one reason costs keep rising. Hospitals and doctors know an employer-covered patient will pay little or nothing, which means they have little incentive to lower the costs of procedures. 

Requiring hospitals to tell patients the cost of care ahead of time would help fix this problem, as would expanding access to health savings accounts. Right now, 90% of U.S. residents can’t get an HSA, a tax-free account to pay for medical expenses. While HSAs are not necessarily a substitute for an insurance policy, they are a powerful financial tool that helps patients afford the care they need. Onerous government regulations, however, only allow people with HSA-qualified health insurance plans to open one. Most federal programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, do not qualify, which means 35% of the population that relies on coverage is automatically excluded from HSA benefits. 

The best part of the reforms proposed in the Washington Examiner series is that none requires more government involvement in the system. Indeed, most would require the government to step away from the system and remove burdensome regulations, which stifle innovation and slow down care. The market will come up with its own solutions if consumers have the power to choose.