Why do Republicans think the "free market" will save us from higher health care costs?

You have more than one problem. First living in a town with one provider is a different issue then free market guiding prices.
Nothing is a perfect solution and even in the best of circumstances people have to move to large cities to seek treatment choices.

Dr Ben Carson is advocating for Doctors to keep getting large salaries from the insurance companies and keep things the way they were in the past.He wants government out of HIS way - not yours!

But it is a bubble that has to burst- even if Obama did nothing. Sick people getting denied or dropped and rates were going up for years with a large aging population. Emergency rooms can not turn( legally) people away and that heavily used and unpaid bill was being subsidized by the people with polices!

There are many ways to bring down drug costs but Bush sealed that dead with Medicare part D and the drug companies. It is the same bad policy we have now with Obama care.

If you want low cost health care- you are right you need to go to another country. At this point the whole system is really a mess!

When in God's name has the government ever gotten involved with anything and made it cost less? Get real!

They don't understand the law of supply and demand. They don't understand that in a free market you will ALWAYS have people who can't afford basic medical care because the equilibrium price is always set above what some people are able to pay.

Either they don't understand it, or they WANT millions to be priced out of healthcare.

Because it did such a great job for the last 200 years. (eyes rolling) It almost brought out economy down with the spiraling health costs.

US public health care would cost trillions

Right now you will never reach that doctor or that hospital without dealing with a dozen insurance and government bureaucrats... THAT is what is impeding your Freedom...

They know better - but the industry has bought them off.

You must be a teenager.

Having worked in healthcare for thirty years I have seen an incredible amount of advances in healthcare.

Only about 5% of the drugs we use today even existed when my career began.

Surgery that is done through a tiny hole by robots used to require a large incision and months of recovery time.

A lot of the procedures we take for granted like knee replacements, cardiac bypass grafts, and cataract operations did not even exist.

all of this innovation occured because of the free market. Not one tiny bit came from the beurocrats in the Federal government.

Believe me if we would go to free market you would see many good changes, and if you live in a town with just one hospital as you say it is true you may have to drive a little further to find a better price on the service and drugs. Currently you don't have a choice because there is no free market in the system only the government and the insurance co.

If you like your doctor you can keep him. You pick one out. Big tall male female old young. And they are yours. Take them home and have them wash you laundry and clean your house. When you come home they will have dinner prepared.
Best of all it is free to all.

Simple, because we have not had a free market economy in health care for the last 50 years and government sure as hell has completely screwed it up. Rising costs are due to government interference with the free market.

The free market can't save everybody but it will keep all of us from getting screwed for supporting layabouts....