Would opening up health insurance drive cost down?

Open up to national plans and coverage. Like Geico health insurance, open heart surgery - so easy a Caveman could do it.
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Probably not, in the long run. In the short run, there would be a lot of 'competition' to get the clients to sign up, and so lots of low premiums. But, the hospital and doctor costs are staying the same or going up, so, with lower premiums it takes a lot more people to ensure they get paid, but that means more people are likely to need the services, a rather vicious spiral. So, health insurance done nationally would either have so many riders and exclusions that it wouldn't be worth the premium to the average punter, or be so expensive that the average punter can't afford it. The only way is to make all health elements absolutely free to everyone, and that has a different set of problems.
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