Facebook
Fark
Digg
Reddit
StumbleLETTER TO THE EDITOR:
Five steps to real health care reform
Sunday, Sept. 20, 2009 | 2:02 a.m.
Here are the factors that must be addressed to reduce health care costs:
• Tort reform. Legislation should be passed to set malpractice award caps or make the loser pay all costs of the litigation. Some analysts state this could significantly reduce costs, because of the practice of defensive medicine.
• Pharmaceutical reform. We should finally allow the federal government to negotiate major discounts for Medicare. Wal-Mart does it. Also, we should allow cheaper drugs to be imported. We hear about the Canadian heath care system as a model, but we do not allow their cheaper medicines into the United States.
• Enforcement of immigration laws. The financial drain on both public and private hospitals has reached epidemic proportions for the treatment of undocumented workers. Enforcing these laws could reduce health care costs.
• Health insurance portability. Make competition nationwide, not state-by-state.
• Modernization of the bureaucratic matrix. The health care industry, both public and private, is one of the last industries to modernize processes of documentation and payment. Both systems continue to be vulnerable to fraud.
Will the public or special interests be served?
Discussion: comments so far…
Comments are moderated by Las Vegas Sun editors. Our goal is not to limit the discussion, but rather to elevate it. Comments should be relevant and contain no abusive language. Comments that are off-topic, vulgar, profane or include personal attacks will be removed. Full comments policy. Additionally, we now display comments from trusted commenters by default. Those wishing to become a trusted commenter need to verify their identity or sign in with Facebook Connect to tie their Facebook account to their Las Vegas Sun account. For more on this change, read our story about how it works and why we did it.
Only trusted comments are displayed on this page. Untrusted comments have expired from this story.
No trusted comments have been posted.
Post a comment
Most Popular
- Viewed
- Discussed
- E-mailed
- UNLV can move forward without the burden of losing streak to San Diego State
- A wife’s wisdom shows birth control issue needn’t be divisive
- Surprise links, negotiated deals addressed by commissioners
- UNLV makes key plays down stretch to hold off San Diego State 65-63
- Hope and change and … what’s missing?
- Motorcycle accident claims life of man in northeast valley
- New York mayor has the right idea
- We don’t need a CEO in charge
- Paying our own way
- Country has ‘given’ citizens a lot
Blogs
The Kats Report
Color from scene at Thomas & Mack: We have a wire job! Rebels win, and Louie Armstrong sings!
South Point owner Michael Gaughan's take on 'Vegas Stripped': 'I'll give it an 8' (4 Comments)
Author relishes writing the life story of ‘larger-than-life’ Oscar Goodman (3 Comments)
Elsewhere
Landowner: All roads could lead to Uxbridge casino
Revel reveals smoke-free casino opening
Cirque du Soleil show in Sands China casino to close this month
Meet the woman behind Sheldon Adelson
The Sun
Locally owned and independent for more than 50 years.
First let us agree that the President and the Congress have a duty to protect the health and welfare of the nation from all causes, not only from foreign invasion.
If the government did nothing to protect us from the pending swine flue pandemic so that only wealthy Americans would have access to and could afford to pay for the immunization, you'd be screaming bloody murder. Wouldn't you? That's a tea party I'd attend. So how about a slogan like "A Toast to Our Good Health. No American Left Behind."
Once that's settled we can argue the details.
Pharmaceutical reform is the only proposal you mention that would actually reduce cost to the consumer.
Tort Reform does not lower cost to consumers. It benefits Insurance companies and doctors at the expense of the patient. Doctors increase their salary with less cost for malpractice insurance, but it spares them from high consequences in cases of egregious malpractice. The worst part of Tort reform is that it increases the Insurance Industry's profits. If a health insurance company is sued for refusal of treatment, or tests requested by a doctor for their patient, they will literally have zero consequences. Suggested is a limit of $250,000 per patient. Patients lose, doctors and the Insurance Industry win.
Competition across state lines sounds great in theory. The problem is it becomes "a rush to the bottom." Insurance Companies will move to states with the least regulations. You buy insurance thinking you're covered, as your state requires, but it's not required in the state where the insurance company is located. Patients get less coverage, outrageous "out of pocket" expenses; overall cost to consumers is increased. Deceptive and designed to increase profits for insurance companies.
It is because of "For-Profit" health insurance and the Insurance Industry pitting patients against Profits that: the U.S. is rated 37th (below Costa Rica); we have more deaths per 100,000 from treatable diseases than any other western nation. We spend $3-6000 more per person, 5-12% more per GDP on health care and we still don't cover 40+ million people.
ALL Western Countries have universal coverage, require non-profit health care whether public or private sector, have a sustainable % of GDP and All have higher rates of survival from treatable disease
Without a public option the Insurance Industry will continue to take 30% off the top for billions in advertising, exorbitant salaries, campaign contributions and lobbyists. They will not lower costs or it affects the profit margin for the entire industry.
Mandatory purchase without a public option is robbery not reform. We will have nationalized "Romney Care" - Massachusetts has plenty of competition between private insurance - yet "Bay State health insurance premiums highest in Country." (Kay Lazar the Globe). This is unacceptable
Additionally: any savings from Tort Reform is goes directly to the Insurance Industry stockholders - it is never passed on to the consumer. That is the their job.
CindyLu... You say: "Pharmaceutical reform is the only proposal you mention that would actually reduce cost to the consumer."
Where have you been?
Illegal aliens cost NVLV 114.3 million dollars last year.
There will be no meaningful health care reform without tort reform...
You my legal beagle must be a lawyer...
Why is medicine in Canada cheaper than in the US?
It is because the drug companies don't have to charge extra for the liability our tort system builds in. Tort reform would go a long ways to lowering the cost of medicine because today the risk of the huge payouts is charged in every medication.
The other difference is the regulatory structure. You cannot import medicine cheaper from Canada unless you change the liability and regulations to match.
Wait Larry do not compare beagles to lawyers. It is so unfair. Beagles are better looking than lawyers. Beagles won't sue you over tort reforms but poptarts, then they are your best friend.
This letter begins to make some sense!
NO PUBLIC OPTION! Keep invasive government out of the health care tent any more than it is already.
Tort reform results in lower insurance premiums to doctors and consumers.
We need to rid the system of pre existing conditions exclusions; cancellation of policies for illness experience;create mobility of insurance policies;limit premium increases;allow competition for policies among the states. And prevent Medicare cuts that will adversely impact seniors. Liberalize Medicaid to cover the poor who cannot afford insurance. Exclude illegtal immigrants from coverage.
Try these and give the changes time to work out.
I would like to make a public apology for my careless outburst. I did not mean to hurt anyone's feelings, but it was a very emotional moment for me.
In an earlier post on this discussion topic this morning, I had a slip of tongue and maligned the good name of Beagles. I now know that I should not have used their good name in the same sentence as "Lawyers."
If you guys want to censure me, then I will take it. Please forgive me in my moment of weakness...
Get CindyLugo to Washington.* She obviously has a brain and knows something about this issue.
*But as someone mentioned, what about that illegal immigrant issue?
http://www.lvrj.com/news/53343302.html
LarryVegas. I understand a number of Beagles have retained an shyster attorney and are going to file a class action suit against you for deformantion of character by comparing them to lawyers. Good luck, if you need help call 877-1500. Glen will be glad to help you.
Ah yes, that Glen Beck is a good fellow. He's been known to take on shysters regardless of race, sex and political affiliations.
I phoned the Beagle House and offered my apology to the Head Beagle. I talked to the Head Beagle's keeper, they guy that keep the Head Beagle's cage clean, and was told that I made the grievous of statements. I was told that I would have to do penance by going to the House of Big Beagles and let all of the Beagles pee on my leg.
So, I went to the House of the Big Beagles, and got my leg wet and then they branded me with the name of "The Racist One...
It turned out that the Head Beagle was just pulling my leg as he was not going to forgive me, no matter how wet my leg was...
Now I am scorned by those who wet on my leg, as they were not as forgiving, as their rhetoric stated.
So the moral of this story is that when you make a mistake, those who wet on your leg, will demonize you to the end of your days.
Mr. Donnelley does not appear to understand the situation with the paharmicutical pricing. First off WalMart offers only generic drugs at the four dollar price. These are drugs that the patent has run out on, any company can manufacture and hopefully the developing company has recovered all of its research and development costs plus a reasonable profit. WalMart probably sells them at cost or slightly below to attract customers.
A U.S. Drug company spends several years developing, testing, and getting USDA approval for a new drug and spends many millions of dollars in the process. When the drug is manufactured in the United States, the drug company takes the amout it costs to develop the drug and the cost to manufacture it including some profit and marketing costs and prices the drug accordingly.
Canada and some of the European countries demand that the pharmicutical sell the drug based solely on the manufacturing costs plus a profit but do not allow the companies to include the development costs into the price of the drug. In other words, Canada is getting a drug that the Americans have paid to develop but Canada is not paying their fair share. Freeloaders.
If we were to allow people to import drugs from Canada the pharmicutical companies would not have the money to research and develop new drugs to meet the needs of the people anywhere.
Like them or not, the American pharmicutical companies have developed some amazing drugs over the years and in spite of their high costs, they have prolonged the lives of thousands of Americans. Let's not be stupid like the socialist countries are. Who knows when a US company will develop a cure for cancer or aids. If it happens, it will not happen in a socialist country.
LarryVegas-That is Glen Learner's phone number not Glen Beck's.
Thanks 101, but I can listen to Glen Beck and it doesn't cost me a thing...
But, if I need a personal injury attorney, I will be sure to call Glen Learner...
Oh, 101, when I mention Glen Beck or FOX NEWS, some on this site wet themselves, down to their shoes...
jb101:
Good post, except that if we open the Canadian border for drug reimportation, the price of drugs in Canada will rise dramatically, while in the U.S. they will fall slightly (owing to our population being 10 times the size of theirs). Drug companies will simply refuse to sell to the Canadian government until they can get the price they need to stay in business. The Canadian government, not wanting to deny their population life-saving drugs, will be forced to pay the price. In the end, drugs will cost the same in both countries.
The reason for the federal law prohibiting the reimportation of drugs is that once they are out of the U.S., the FDA has no control over them. It's a public safety issue. Some sort of inter-government agreement on controls for handling, prescribing, and dispensing drugs might make it possible to integrate the two countries' drug systems. Only problem is the Canadian government would not want to end their freerider status and face the anger of their voters for raising taxes to pay for the hgiher cost of drugs.
Ok, a few things, if I were in England or Germany I believe they would meet my medical needs without asking questions or charging me. Under these proposals should such a person come to this country we would arrange for them to see the grim reaper. So, my point, there is lots of hate expressed toward hispanics. Even the border fences make no sense. The 9 - 11 folks mostly came through Canada - so we should build a 3,000 mile fence to protect ourselves. Ok, and none of the proposals cover those who are not insured. If they are provided for some of the other premiums would go down because it would assign those costs to a program instead of spreading it around by making all of us pay. Another big (make that huge) factor is the "competition" which causes the purchase of unneeded expensive equipment by all hospitals when it frequently will not be fully utilized. Hey, hope some of you care and quit screaming!
There's something about equating Germany and doctors that run shivers down my backside. And England, isn't that where the Mad Cow Disease came from?
The border fence with a molt makes sense to me and the LV Med Center. Did you hear that they lost 114.3 million dollars on illegals last year?
Between the illegals and the lawyers the medical system is flat broke...
"Thanks 101, but I can listen to Glen Beck and it doesn't cost me a thing...".
Not true Larry. Judging by your posts, it has already cost you your sanity and the ability to reason coherently.
I don't know who the bigger scum bag is,
Glen Beck or Lou Dobbs. I think they might
be related.
Just a few words of wisdom.
Stan... I hate to break this to you, but look who's talking...
Teamster... I thought I taught you better then this. and I am still waiting for your "words of wisdom."
Sorry guys, I have to go watch the early morning news on FOX NEWS and catch up on the ACORN issue.
Oh, sorry, you don't watch FOX so you don't know about ACORN.