Comments
The cornerstone of this
Submitted by member on September 30, 2009 - 11:01am.
The cornerstone of this reform will be building organizational capacity. The areas of setting national priorities and goals, performance measurement and reporting, payment reform, community leadership, IT and public education are the key comprehensive policy agenda that need to be addressed. We will need to change systems of care and be adaptive rather than proscriptive. Minority communities, vulnerable populations have a disproportionate burden based on health disparities related to gaps in quality, use and access to care. Moving towards an effective, safe adn efficient care system that accounts for health disparities will achieve a more optimal American Health System
Robert A. Beltran, M.D. M.B.A.
Latino Med Policy Institute
Loved this column: right to
Submitted by member on April 8, 2009 - 8:54am.
Loved this column: right to the bottom line of what needs to happen and what will make reform succeed or fail.
julie
hasc
It is interesting to see how
Submitted by member on April 20, 2009 - 4:50am.
It is interesting to see how the debate regarding the future of our healthcare system is being played out in the media channels across the country. It's impossible to defend the status quo, that much almost every constituency can agree upon. However, Medicare is failing, and has always been an easy target for those looking to commit fraud. Why would we look to expand upon a failed program that offers nothing in the way of innovation, or brings to an end the perverse "third party payor" system that has brought us to this point? Health Savings Accounts hold great promise in reining in runaway healthcare costs. Empirical data emerging from the major national insurers finds that HSA accountholders are taking more generic drugs, heading to the ER far less when their child has the sniffles, and also joining wellness programs in record numbers. Why? Well, it's their money now, and they have a clear incentive to take better care of themselves so that they can benefit from the changes they make. We need to unleash the power of the American consumer on our own healthcare system. In Southern California, HSA's lag far behind other parts of the country. Many will assert that that is because of the managed care penetration in this marketplace. Indeed, no other part of the country embraced the value that HMO's brought to the market like Southern California. However, managed care failed, or has stalled, because it made the physician the center of the focus regarding controlling the cost, and access, of healthcare. The gatekeeper concept worked initially, then it reverted back to hyperinflationary levels. The main problem in getting HSA's to become more widespread is that many people benefiting from the status quo (Big pharma, trial lawyers, insurance companies, insurance brokers) aren't looking to advance the concept. Let's take the role of the insurance broker. If they have clients on PPO plans with conventional (ie anachronistic, bloated) deductibles, and they have all of their clients enroll on HDHP (High Deductible Health Plans) that are HSA compatible tomorrow, they will see an erosion in their commissions of 20-40%, or more. Insurance companies are ambivalent about HSA's and the qualifying HDHP's. Why? Well, while we know they can underwrite the HDHP plans profitably, they see significant top line erosion in their revenues in the HDHP/HSA scenario. As such, it has been interesting to see the health insurers in CA price their HDHP coverage very conservatively. I am looking for speaking engagements to discuss the potential of Health Savings Accounts (HSA's) in reforming our ailing healthcare system. Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions regarding HSA's.
Kevin Carlin, Benefits Consultant
Houska Insurance Services
04/20/09 4:50 PM
Comments
The cornerstone of this
Loved this column: right to
It is interesting to see how