Health care isn't cheap.

This story in the LA Times reminds me of why the for-profit health care system we have in the United States remains a laughable situation, especially for individuals buying insurance. Nothing - except that in a controlled monopoly such as oil under OPEC's control - goes up 30+% in price in a year, for two years in a row; that's unheard of increases.

So I thought I'd apply double 30% increases to some different goods and services to put this into perspective using BLS's December 2009 Consumer Price Index:

Comparison of prices

Item	Dec 2009	Dec 2011
1 pound ground beef	$2.06	$3.48
1 pound sliced bacon	$3.50	$5.92
1 pound whole chicken	$1.27	$2.15
1 dozen grade A large eggs	$1.70	$2.87
1 gallon whole milk	$3.04	$5.14
1 pound cheddar cheese	$4.42	$7.47
1 pound red delicious apples	$1.16	$1.96
1 pound cabbage	$0.57	$0.96
1 pound grapefruit	$1.03	$1.74
16 ounce potato chips	$4.53	$7.66
1/2 gallon ice cream	$4.43	$7.49
1 pound creamy peanut butter	$2.09	$3.53
Average US electricity bill	$65.02	$109.88
1 gallon gasoline	$2.70	$4.56

I wish pay would out-pace cost of living, but even a 30% annual increase would be crazy. Personally, I think Anthem Blue Cross' increases are indicative of a system that is broken.

It's too bad Republicans didn't back Senator Ron Wyden's (D-Oregon) bi-partisan Healthy Americans Act, and it's sad that Senator Max Baucus (D-Montana) won't let it out of committee. Take a look at the explanation of the bill at Wikipedia (which includes the CBO's conclusion that it was budget-neutral) and the reporting of it by the Kaiser Foundation (including an excerpt from then-CBO director Peter Orzag) and the summary provided by Senator Ron Wyden.

If that's not enough for you, read think tank Brookings Institution's take on Wyden's proposal. But perhaps the most provocative review, from the Lewin Group (funded by United Health Care) which was highly critical of the current legislation coming from Max Baucus and other Democrats, finds that Ron Wyden's proposal would actually lower Americans' health care spending.

With the election of a Republican senator from Massachusetts, maybe it's time for Americans on both sides of the aisle to push Congress to embrace the bi-partisan Healthy Americans Act?