There are good private sector options for broadening the availability of coverage. Many states have experimented with these options and there are good data on which ones are likely to be most effective. Unfortunately, none of these options is being adequately explored or debated in Washington as advocates try to ram through a government run plan.
Consumers of healthcare services know from experience that there is a lot of waste and inefficiency in the system. Most experts agree that healthcare costs could be reduced by twenty percent or more through a combination of the following: 1) promoting healthier behavior through incentives for quitting smoking, reducing obesity, and improving diet and fitness; 2) reducing the anti-competitive effect of state coverage mandates that make each state a distinct health insurance market and limit competition; 3) converting to standardized electronic record keeping and improving availability of non-personal medical statistics; and, 4) improving the way medical errors and medical malpractice are determined and victims are compensated.
The problem, again, is that there has been too little analysis and public debate about the options for reducing expense. Reasonable people ask, “With so much at stake, what’s the rush?” It is a good question that should, and does, raise eyebrows. Do the people rushing all of this through worry that the government insurance plan and other favorite aspects of their healthcare reform proposal won’t survive an open and thorough public debate? In Goshen people smell a rat.
I hope our Washington representatives spent some of their recent recess talking to regular people like those in Goshen. If they did, they should reassess their strategy when they return to Washington this week. They should reverse the reckless spending provisions in the fiscal stimulus bill, introduce a twelve to twenty-four month public debate period to make sure we have the right answers before making major changes to our healthcare system, and discontinue any discussion of a large new government program. With this approach, the Goshen grievances will dissipate and trust in Washington may begin to recover.