Why do single payer advocates claim that a publicly financed, and publicly administered system is not “socialized medicine?
Guaranteeing access to health care for all citizens is no more socialized than guaranteeing the right to education for all citizens. Under a single payer system, in which all providers would be paid the same amount for the same service, providers must compete with one another on the basis of quality and convenience of service. This is a return to a pure competitive model, a model which has been disrupted by our managed care system, in which patients are forced to see providers on an insurer’s panel, and fees are set without provider input. A publicly financed health care insurance program is not a delivery system, which would be socialized medicine, it is only a payment system within the context of a competitive, free market.
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