By Mike Daly
Retired CEO Baystate Health System
If you find what is going on in Washington these days confusing, join the crowd.
Everything I read refers to reform differently depending on the day. Many news articles describe efforts in Washington as health insurance reform but what lawmakers are really grappling with is “healthcare system reform.”
Insurance reform is important, but it is only one component of the real objective, which is an overhaul of the entire healthcare system.
The healthcare system in the U.S. is too costly. Quality and outcomes across the nation are uneven, access to physicians and hospital services leave out too many citizens and frankly, we have a non-system.
Health system reform can only be achieved if we attack the problems incrementally.
Here are a handful of the issues that need to be addressed:
- Insurance reform
- Tort reform
- Payment reform
- Regulatory reform
- Oversight reform
- Special interest reform (i.e., unions)
Taking on all these problems at once invites failure. Addressing them one at a time can lead to real solutions.
Of course we would need more time if we were to handle these problems incrementally. Lawmakers may not like that idea. But I believe this approach has the most probability in terms of success.
October 31st, 2009 at 10:41 am
Finally, someone has “hit the nail on the head”.
November 2nd, 2009 at 2:58 am
A comprehensive approach would best serve the country. Unfortunately, the impending financial meltdown of our healthcare system compels us to deal with the unsustainable increase in costs. With our without expansion of insurance coverage, dramatic and decisive action must be taken.
November 9th, 2009 at 9:57 am
Mike, you have identified the correct way to address the issues instead of throughing $1 trillion at the problem with so many unidentified solutions.