Dollars cut from the federal deficit by returning the decision-making and funding for health care to the states?

Nearly $3 Trillion.

The opportunity to finally be the decision-maker when it comes to your own health care?

Priceless.

***

All eyes are on the Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, a.k.a. the Super Committee, a.k.a. another pointless committee that allows politicians to fundraise for campaign cash based on their Super Cool Committee appointments. The goal of the Super Awesome Committee is to cut $1.5 Trillion from the federal deficit over the next ten years. Keep in mind that this is a goal, not a requirement. The Super Great Committee must come up with a plan that can pass with seven out of twelve votes by November 23, and Congress as a whole must pass that plan by December 23. If they fail to meet either one of these deadlines, it will trigger automatic cuts of $1.2 Trillion (over ten years), meaning real reform will yet again get bumped for politically expedient, fake "cuts."

Thus far, none of the ideas floated have been new or useful. The only idea that has received much press is the usual class warfare garbage about taxing "the rich" and making them "pay their fair share." As an aside, who gets to decide that...? And how do we know what a "fair share" looks like...? Oh, never mind. Silly questions.

What we have not yet seen from Washington DC, and probably won't if history is a good indicator, are courageous ideas that break the mold - ideas that will seriously address the country's fiscal crisis.

The good news is that there is something called the Health Care Compact (HCC), and it is one of those serious and courageous ideas.

In a nutshell, the HCC returns the decision-making power and the funding, from the federal government, back to the states. This means that states that become members of the HCC will have the freedom to opt out of costly and inefficient federal mandates - unfunded mandates - that are strangling state budgets, and will bankrupt them even further once the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare) is fully implemented.

Last week, the Self-Governance Institute released the results of their study on the fiscal impact that the Health Care Compact would have on the federal deficit.

They found that if the HCC is adopted by all 50 states it would generate close to $3 Trillion in savings by the year 2021.

So, not only would the HCC decrease the federal deficit by almost $3 Trillion (which is double the goal of the Super Duper Committee, but hey, who's counting?), it would also free our states from the oppressive federal mandates that are already bankrupting state governments. Additionally, this would give the residents of each state the ability to pursue a health care system that they actually like, without being forced to live under the current one-size-fits-all template.

There is another added benefit to introducing the idea of "local control" to the health care debate. It is much, much easier for average citizens to impact the decisions made by their state government than it is to impact decisions made by the federal government.

Imagine it! Everyday citizens could actually attend state legislative hearings to testify, and help craft their state's health care regulations and policy! When was the last time an ordinary American drove to Washington DC and testified at a Congressional hearing? State governments are far - far - from perfect, but they are closer to the people whom they represent. Constituents' voices are heard louder at the state level because state legislators represent hundreds of thousands fewer people than do members of Congress.

But wait... wouldn't breaking up the monopoly of the current health care system make it harder for special interests to influence federal legislation because different legislation would be written in 50 states? And wouldn't it be more difficult to indulge in crony capitalism if the decision-making occurred closer to the people? Why yes, yes it would.

With more and more governors across America, from both major parties, pushing back on onerous and unrealistic federal mandates, the Health Care Compact is a timely and desperately needed proposal and the Super Rad Committee should sit up and take note. Actually, they should take $3 Trillion notes and recommend that Congress approve the Health Care Compact.

The Health Care Compact has been introduced in 13 states since February, and is already adopted in Georgia, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Texas. For more information, please visit www.healthcarecompact.org.