healthcare
"Unlike buying a car which has a specific, albeit negotiable, price, neither the buyer (the patient) nor the seller (the physician, health practice, hospital) have any idea what the price is at the time that the service is delivered. If you are uninsured, the provider can charge whatever they feel like for the services, which is typically 3x to 5x the negotiated price to a health insurance provider, enough to ruin anyone financially for the rest of their life. Until there is transparency in health care pricing there can't be a free market in health care services. "
A comment from the Yahoo Board
"-Our current health care system is like a rotted, leaking boat.
-The Affordable Care Act is like a length of duct tape, and a cup for bailing.
a new boat would be a good idea!"
METAMIA is a free database of analogy and metaphor. Anyone can contribute or search. The subject matter can be anything. Science is popular, but poetry is encouraged. The goal is to integrate our fluid muses with the stark literalism of a relational database. Metamia is like a girdle for your muses, a cognitive girdle.