“Some time back, the driver’s-side door of our family car got in an argument with a parking-garage pillar. I found a body shop to fix it and my insurance company paid the shop, less the deductible. More frequently, an insurance company will issue a check directly to the policyholder. But in either case, the policyholder decides who’s going to fix what’s broken. Here’s a thought: Why doesn’t health insurance work that way? That’s what John Goodman, president of the Dallas-based National Center for Policy Analysis is asking. [He] … points out that if health insurance operated like auto or homeowner insurance, consumers would gain the buying power needed to create competition in medical services. It wouldn’t take long for Websites to pop up, rating hospitals and clinics, and providing pricing information — just as travel sites rate hotels. Soon, providers who delivered poor service would confront the dilemma faced by every struggling business: change or die.” (10/01/07)