The political model for government run health care is quite simple. Solve the “cost problem” by establishing a global budget that the state will pay for in a given time period. Front load the plan so the vast majority of covered lives who are healthy get at least some access with their “I’m Covered” card. Then ration the remaining amount of services to the small number of very sick in any year. Most people are happy with the plan since they are fairly healthy and vote maximizing politicians only need 51% to be satisfied. Even a chunk of the sick that have trouble getting treated don’t complain because it’s “free”. A great deal for politicians and a really bad deal for the sick. See http://www.freemarketcure.com/brainsurgery.php for more details.