The original constitutional convention in 1787 consisted of 55 men who spent 4 months in lively debate in drafting a 4-page constitution. There were major issues to resolve such as the power of large states vs. small states, how to address slavery, the role of the federal government vs. the state governments, and how much power to grant to the people. There were strong opinions on both sides of these issues and in the end each delegate and state had to compromise to achieve the final draft of the constitution. The delegates themselves wrote the words of the constitution and there was often debate over individual words. The delegates all served at their own expense and endured a hot and muggy summer in Philadelphia in a closed room with no air conditioning.

Fast forward to today and we have strayed far from that standard for making legislation. We now spend hours or days in debate (if that) on 2000 pages of legislative language written by someone else. Our congressman all get paid for their work (and many find ways to make significantly more than their salaries), they have staffs to write their bills, and they debate in a spacious and air conditioned room. We have heard this year that many congressmen don’t even read the bills they vote on.

How do we get back to the ideals of 1787? We can start by getting rid of the staffs of our congressmen. Let them have a secretary and that is it. If they were forced to write their own bills without the benefit of a staff, then we might get more real debate and less grandstanding, shorter bills that can be understood and explained, and politicians that can be held more accountable to the people that elect them.

When I got my first apartment on my own, the landlord included the utilities in the rent. Since it was included, I ran the dishwasher everyday, didn’t worry about turning off lights, kept the temperature just right, even if I would be gone all day, and took nice long showers. After a few months, the landlord told me that my utility bills were really high so that I would need to start paying the water and electricity bills. My rent would be lowered some to accommodate this. Since I now was responsible for directly paying the utility bills, I was much more frugal.

This is the answer to health insurance. The best way to control costs is to have people directly pay for their health insurance and health care. When we have our employer (or worse yet, the government) pay for our health insurance, we tend to run to the doctor for any little thing, doctor’s run more tests than are really required, and costs spiral out of control. If we actually had to pay for our health insurance directly, we would be more frugal. If we wanted low co-pays, we would have to pay higher premiums. If we could live with a high deductible, our premiums would be lower and we would think twice before going to the doctor for something.

There was a time in my career where my employer did not offer a good health insurance plan for Ohio where we lived. I was given the option of taking the money the company paid for health insurance per employee and getting my own policy. I had many plans to choose from and saw quickly that I could save a lot on my monthly premiums if I went with higher deductibles and co-pays. I chose this option and it worked out great. We were covered if anything catastrophic happened but if we were relatively healthy, we saved some money. My employer now gives us a few options and that is how we receive health insurance today. I wish we could go back to having more choice and seeing the costs more directly.

Government run health insurance or health care is not the solution. As with most things, it is individual liberty and freedom that are the answers.