The point of 'Sanders being hamstrung' is that I'd rather it be him, trying to do the right thing and being opposed, than Hillary 'Business as usual' Clinton.
It's something I'm interested in seeing changed. You're right that costs are too high for what we get, and that this would be changed for the better if there was a governmental body negotiating with all the companies for health care costs. Medicare/Caid often gets the best prices on medical devices for example based on its power and customer base. What I would like to see is a government plan offered in tandem with the private options. Like when Google Fiber goes out and says, "Hey, we're going to undercut AT&T to force them to beef up their network and lower prices." I want the government to do that. It would be cool if you just had the option to join Medicare as it stands and not just be paying a private company because you're forced to give them your business or pay a huge fine.
All of which is mIles better than what we have now. With regard to healthcare/cost management, I think of it as a tool that the species needs to refine. Right now the US has a flint knife and Europe has a crude bronze blade. Sure the bronze blade might not be great, but it's better than the flint. The US has the choice of making a bronze knife, or trying to sharpen a flint blade past it's useful tolerances.