Michael Blaustein, 43, of Williamsport, is concerned about the high cost of health insurance, especially for those who are transitioning from state-provided medical programs to private insurance.
In the past, Blaustein has used free medical programs provided from the state.
Recently, he took a job that offered him insurance. However, he discovered that many of the doctors and counselors he was used to seeing now were out of his price range.
The frustration came as a slight shock to him.
"I thought I was doing all the right things, actually paying for my own medical insurance. But now I have to change doctors and I can't afford specialists who I used to rely upon," Blaustein said.
The situation is one that Blaustein thinks many Americans are experiencing. They don't make enough to acquire full coverage for themselves and their families, but make too much money to apply for alternative programs.
"It's the concept of the working poor. People have these full-time jobs and work very hard, but still manage to slip between the cracks of medical coverage," Blaustein said.
He was frustrated by what he thinks is a lack of transparency regarding the cost of medical procedures.
"No consumer is going to check the prices of each medical procedure, and doctors can charge whatever they want," Blaustein said.
"Once you're set in a program, you can't shop around for other, cheaper, alternatives if you want to continue to be covered by your insurance provider," he added.
Blaustein believes the best solution, moving forward, would be for America to adopt "either a totally free market version of health care or (one) completely socialized."
He cited historical doctors to prove his point.
"In the past, they had no insurance and no middle man. A doctor was almost a public service. Yes, you paid for their time, but in smaller towns, sometimes that debt could be handled in ways that were not financial, such as trade or goods," Blaustein said.
