01-20-2010, 02:37 PM
What are the goals of health care reform? I don't know if either side has clearly articualted what the goals should be and it is difficult to have meaningful debate if we don't know the problems we want to solve. I think there are 2 things most should be willing to agree to:
-It should leave no one uncovered
-Medical debt should no longer be a cause of personal bankruptcy in America
From there, I think ideas diverge. IMHO, the next two critical attributes are that it must provide relief to employers, so rising costs don't cause economic disaster and that it must promote both efficiency and innovation so that the entire medical establishment--doctors, nurses, hospitals, drug and medical companies and insurers collectively responsible for making care better, safer and less costly.
What I would like to see happen first is to clearly address point 1:
-insurance reform to eliminate loss or denial due to pre-existing conditions
-allow unmarried children coverage on parents plan to age 29
-mandate insurance for those who currently have access, but by choice do not participate, probably with some type of phase in period
-expand medicare and/or VA healthcare to cover the remaining uninsured
This would provide the coverage needed, but will generate supply/demand issues--which would impact cost and affordability. Health care is a service with unlimited demand, but limited supply. To control costs, we need to limit demand, probably through a combination of preventative measures, education and some type of "rationing". We currently ration to some extent based on economic means--we need to develop a more equitable system. We also need to address the supply side, by incentives to create more primary care professionals--nurses, PAs and physician.
This is too long, so I need to quit for now. Oh, I'm not a registered republican, but I probably lie right of center.
-It should leave no one uncovered
-Medical debt should no longer be a cause of personal bankruptcy in America
From there, I think ideas diverge. IMHO, the next two critical attributes are that it must provide relief to employers, so rising costs don't cause economic disaster and that it must promote both efficiency and innovation so that the entire medical establishment--doctors, nurses, hospitals, drug and medical companies and insurers collectively responsible for making care better, safer and less costly.
What I would like to see happen first is to clearly address point 1:
-insurance reform to eliminate loss or denial due to pre-existing conditions
-allow unmarried children coverage on parents plan to age 29
-mandate insurance for those who currently have access, but by choice do not participate, probably with some type of phase in period
-expand medicare and/or VA healthcare to cover the remaining uninsured
This would provide the coverage needed, but will generate supply/demand issues--which would impact cost and affordability. Health care is a service with unlimited demand, but limited supply. To control costs, we need to limit demand, probably through a combination of preventative measures, education and some type of "rationing". We currently ration to some extent based on economic means--we need to develop a more equitable system. We also need to address the supply side, by incentives to create more primary care professionals--nurses, PAs and physician.
This is too long, so I need to quit for now. Oh, I'm not a registered republican, but I probably lie right of center.