I accept the Governors Health Care challenge
Components of a Rational Health Care System
Every bushel of Kansas wheat, every Boeing aircraft, and every other product we attempt to export and sell in the global market is burdened by the high cost of health care. Our existing health care "system" is the most expensive in the world; currently, Kansas spends about 16% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on health care. Universal health care without cost reduction only makes this problem worse. Our goal for health care reform should be universal coverage, but at a cost of no more than 10% of GDP. This reduces health care costs for employers by 1/3, increasing profits and allowing them to expand. It reduces costs for working families, helping them to save the money that can put their children through college. Pouring money into the existing “system” is not the solution, better management is.
We should adopt a Rational Health Care System that includes the best ideas world wide for keeping costs down, while still providing health
coverage for everyone.
1) Creating a "Rational Health Care Market." This new discount health insurance marketplace would adopt rules to reduce costs and encourage competition. Functioning similar to a farmer's co-op, it would, on behalf of its members, negotiate and purchase low cost pharmaceuticals and other medical supplies. We have many great health care assets in the private sector: hospitals, doctors, dentists, nurses, and even some insurance companies & HMO’s. The Rational Health Care Market will continue to use these assets. Unfortunately, they are currently used in an irrational and wasteful manner, and need to be better organized to reach their full potential. The Rational Health Care Market does not replace the existing high-cost market, or limit the free economy. It merely adds another choice, another option, or an alternative avenue for employers large & small, for farmers, and for individuals.
Buyers and sellers who choose to use this RHCS market would be required to abide by the following cost reduction rules:
2) Reduce costs by focusing on informed, empowered consumers and personal responsibility. Americans compare prices and performance when shopping for furniture, cars, electronics, and food. We need access to medical prices, as well, so we can shop and compare to get the best deals. When consumers can go online to compare medical prices and performance, we'll be able to choose the best insurance plans, best providers, best hospitals, and best pharmaceuticals. This approach empowers us to hold insurance companies accountable and makes it more profitable for providers to keep costs down. We can also give consumers more choices. "Health Savings Accounts, "50/50," and "limited" plans provide options for people who want greater control, often with tax advantages that effectively pay some of the plan's cost. At the same time, Americans must be personally responsible for eating a healthy and balanced diet, exercising, and avoiding tobacco dependency. A plan which contains a series of incentives and disincentives to do this will encourage Americans to live healthier lives. For example, tobacco avoidance and regular exercise can be rewarded with lower health premiums. Smoking, overeating, and other bad habits must be discouraged with higher premiums and co-pays. Bi-annual checkups for all participants should be mandatory and free. If we give away benefits without demanding self-responsibility and lifestyle changes, the result will be bad habits, dependency, and climbing costs.
3) Reduce costs by eliminating duplicative bureaucratic overhead. We should apply the same ideas that made Newt Gingrich & Bill Clinton’s welfare reform a success in the 1990's. Bill and Newt consolidated numerous Federal welfare programs into block grants which were given to individual states to manage, much like the Canadian health care system. Each state designs programs and invests the money in ways best suited to their population. Similarly, by consolidating federal and state health programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and Veterans Health Care we will eliminate multiple bureaucracies, lower costs, streamline procedures, and save billions in duplicative overhead. Mergers and consolidations work in the private sector. They can work in the health care sector too.
4) Reduce costs by eliminating incentives to litigate for medical malpractice. Every European country with universal health care adopted this model decades ago, eliminating medical malpractice litigation as we know it. They save money, ensure patients have legal recourse, and provide every citizen with quality health care- and we should too. We need to eliminate attorney 'contingency fees' and awards for 'pain & suffering' to achieve this goal. Injured patients would not be shortchanged, however. Instead, they would receive monetary awards based on a sure, predetermined schedule of benefits similar to the Workers Compensation system, ensuring equality of compensation.
5) Reduce costs by reducing medical errors. We must ensure that patients get the best care possible, and by using the latest technology, we can make the process as risk-free as possible. Electronic medical records and electronic patient medical cards allow doctors, pharmacists, nurses, and hospitals to coordinate patient care and avoid mistakes. This technology eliminates time-consuming paperwork and streamlines the reimbursement process, while advanced firewalls effectively ensure security. The Governor’s Health Care Cost Containment Commission is developing helpful ideas in this area, and we should seriously consider their recommendations.
6) Reduce costs by eliminating duplicative medical studies. There’s an old saying, “If a tree falls in the forest and nobody hears it, does it make a sound?” Similarly: “If medical research clearly proves certain habits are harmful to one’s health, and many people ignore it, do the studies really matter?” Smoking and obesity are clearly proven to cause poor health conditions that are expensive to treat, yet Americans continue to use tobacco and more and more people continue to gain unhealthy weight. Duplicative research does not stimulate change- advocating personal responsibility does.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
