A few years ago, Dr. Keith Smith needed a new roof. His insurance company wouldn’t cover the hail damage, so he did something most of us rarely get to do: he asked for real prices with no insurance in the picture.
The roofer told him he’d have to sharpen his pencil. No inflated baseline. No assumption that a third party would pay. Just a customer who would compare quotes and choose the best value.
The price came in two to three times lower than quotes from contractors who assumed he had coverage.
That’s not a coincidence. That’s the market working.
When insurance sets the terms, prices inflate to match the system — not the service. Remove that distortion, and the same thing happens in healthcare that happened with Dr. Smith’s roof: prices fall, competition increases, and quality follows.
The roof didn’t need a government mandate to get cheaper. It needed a customer with a real choice. Healthcare is no different.
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