A Nurse’s Perspective On Healthcare Reform
Well, apparently they call a nurse!
Either that or Nurse Nellie caused the headache.
But we know that nurses never cause doctors to have headaches, so that can’t be what’s happening.
Ha!
Trust me, there have been a few doctors over the years that have given me major headaches and I have no doubt that I have been the impetus behind a few MD migraines myself!
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The guy in the Anacin ad must be doing what I’ve been doing for the last two days.
Trying to get a grip on healthcare reform.
That alone is enough to give you a migraine.
There is so much information and conjecture and opinion and debate, it is difficult to know where to start.
Who gets covered? What gets covered? Who pays? Who decides the charges? Who decides the fees? Who has an agenda: political, financial or otherwise? Private or public plan?
And the most important question of all: Who is fighting for what is best for the patient?
Because, when all is said and done, WE are “the patient”.
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Okay, so I’ve come up with some foundations; these are things that I feel must be at the heart of any health care reform debate:
1. Every citizen must have health care coverage.
2. Every citizen needs to own their health care coverage.
3. There should be a choice between private and public plans.
4. Every citizen must be able to choose between a private or a public plan and switch between as necessary.
5. Each plan must cover basic health care: physicals, screening, immunizations, well care.
6. Each plan must cover chronic or catastrophic illnesses. (Diabetes, asthma, MS, cancer – just a few examples)
7. After basic health care and chronic/catastrophic illness, each citizen should be able to choose how they want to be covered. I have heard this called the “cafeteria plan”.
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Gee, I don’t ask for much, do I?
We don’t have to invent the wheel here. Other countries have gone before us; there are models of universal coverage we can study.
The operative word here is “study”. Take what is good, understand what does not work and use that knowledge to form a unique form of universal health care that meets the needs of the citizens of the United States.
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Probably the easiest way to tackle health care is from a personal angle.
I just found out what my COBRA payment would be if I left my job tomorrow.
I’m hoping my jaw heals before I go to work on Thursday.
But that’s a topic for the next post.
*This blog post was originally published at Emergiblog*
I like your list and I would add simplicity to it. Insurance plans read like stereo instructions and I would wager most people don't fully understand how their plans work. That's not a big deal for people in good plans (probably through a group) but it bankrupts people that inadvertently buy junk plans that they don't fully understand.
Interesting too how the US is blatantly not interested in studying what works well in other countries and we hear a lot about a “uniquely American plan.” We are going that route to try and appease as many special interests as possible. A lot of them are not going to take a change well that they lose big on.
I like your list and I would add simplicity to it. Insurance plans read like stereo instructions and I would wager most people don't fully understand how their plans work. That's not a big deal for people in good plans (probably through a group) but it bankrupts people that inadvertently buy junk plans that they don't fully understand.
Interesting too how the US is blatantly not interested in studying what works well in other countries and we hear a lot about a “uniquely American plan.” We are going that route to try and appease as many special interests as possible. A lot of them are not going to take a change well that they lose big on.
Let me guess – the COBRA payment was in the realm of $800? At least, that's what I've heard about from other folks ….
Let me guess – the COBRA payment was in the realm of $800? At least, that's what I've heard about from other folks ….