Plus500 Ltd.

Over the past 25 years, inflation has gone up about 87%. Not great but at least somewhat predictable. What’s completely out of line is how health insurance premiums exploded 319% in that same span. That single number explains why so many people feel broke even when the economy supposedly looks “strong.”

Wages never caught up. Most workers saw pay rise maybe 50%, and that’s being generous. People are still doing the same jobs, putting in the same hours but every year, more of their paycheck disappears just to keep their healthcare. We have a system that drains you, leaving families choosing between medical bills, rent, and groceries.

The issue isn’t only that healthcare got expensive, it’s how it happened. The industry is packed with middlemen, especially pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), who make billions by marking up drug prices. They’re supposed to negotiate discounts, but they’ve turned into the ones inflating costs. The FTC found specialty drugs marked up over 1,000%. A cancer drug that costs $30 somehow turns into a bill for thousands. And it all happens behind closed doors, where no one can see who’s pocketing what.

That’s the trick. The system thrives on confusion. The harder it is to understand, the easier it is for companies to hide margins and shift blame. That’s why 91 million Americans can’t afford proper healthcare. One in three people skipped or delayed care last year simply because of cost. This has become the new normal.

A few people, like @mcuban are at least trying to chip away at the problem. His company, Cost Plus Drugs, runs on transparent pricing, buying drugs directly, keeping margins low, and publishing what everything costs. It’s not a silver bullet but it’s proof that the system’s complexity isn’t necessary. The moment someone shows a simpler, cheaper model, it exposes how much of the existing cost is artificial.

Thank you, Mark Cuban, for proving that doing the right thing can still shake an entire industry.

Source: StockMarket.News