Pirates in our clinics

Remarkable. The pool of customers shrinks but the price doubles.

Health care costs doubled from 1996 to 2006, but more are being left out of the health care system than ever before.

An estimated 87 million people — one in every three Americans under the age of 65 — were uninsured.

And blacklists are everywhere, pumping margins.

Trying to buy health insurance on your own and have gallstones? You’ll automatically be denied coverage. Rheumatoid arthritis? Automatic denial. Severe acne? Probably denied. Do you take Metformin, a popular drug for diabetes? Denied. Use the anti-clotting drug Plavix or Seroquel, prescribed for anti-psychotic or sleep problems? Forget about it.

First, do no harm to the health care provider’s income.