The True Cost of “Free” Healthcare

Published June 11, 2024

Single-payer healthcare systems like those in Canada and the UK ultimately lead to long wait times, rationing and reduced access to treatments, and poorer health outcomes compared to the United States. Scott Atlas admits that while the U.S. has the highest healthcare costs, it also provides the best access to high-quality care, and that moving to a single-payer system would destroy the quality of care and technological healthcare innovation. Instead, he proposes a market-oriented approach to healthcare reform focused on increasing price transparency, reducing regulations, and empowering consumers to make informed choices to suit their needs.

Check Out More from Scott Atlas:

  • Watch "The Cost of Identity Politics in American Politics" with Dr. Scott Atlas and Dr. Stanley Goldfarb here. 
  • Listen to "Now 4 Years Later, What Have We Learned from the Covid Pandemic?" with Dr. Scott Atlas on the Lars Larson Show. Part 1 here. Part 2 here.
  • Watch Dr. Scott Atlas' previous Policy Boot Camp discussion, "Reviewing Pandemic Policies" here.

The opinions expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Hoover Institution or Stanford University. © 2024 by the Board of Trustees of Leland Stanford Junior University.

Cast

Scott W. Atlas

Scott W. Atlas

Related

Articles

“What Do We Do Now?”

This final line in a long-ago movie about a fictional California race seems to fit our real, post-election Sacramento. The capital mood is stranger than fiction, with its outgoing governor who won’t cede the spotlight and a governor-elect who’s short on specifics.

November 12, 2026

Videos

“Extinction Level Event”: Jonah Goldberg On The Midterm Elections

Jonah Goldberg discusses the aftermath of this week’s midterm election in the US – a shocking repudiation of the Trump presidency and arguably the harshest setback for Republican candidates nationwide since 1974’s Watergate backlash. 

November 6, 2026

Articles

We Know Price Setting Leads To Disaster, But We Still Do It Every Year In Medicare

How do prices work in functioning markets?

November 4, 2026