[Hendrix]

"Kind of like how when people conserve electricity, the electric companies raise rates to maintain profits."

Electric companies are mostly monopolies, and thus they are not subject to our free market system. Entities that are not monopolies (health care) cannot raise prices because of competition in our system (they would lose market share to the other competitors).

Learn some basic economics and it will take you a long way to understanding all of this. Unfortunately, most people don't have a clue about how our free market system works or basic economics.

[King Moonracer]

Exactly where do free markets exist???? All markets are imperfect to one level or another, the more complex, the less free. I bet the insurance companies would love for everyone to buy their own insurance, then it would be their actuarials, government lobbyists, marketing shills, and MBA braintrust against each and every consumer. And if it were wide open, there'd be no explicit or implicit price collusion; none whatsoever...eyes rolling...