October 7th, 2009 by DrRob in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion
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Dear Mr. Obama and all of you congress folks:
I know you have been arguing about how to fix our system (and it really does need fixing). I know there is not much you can all agree on. I know it wasn’t all that much fun to face those yelling people at the town hall meetings. The press hasn’t been nice, and the polls aren’t good either. You guys are having a rough go of it.
So I am going to do you a big favor.
What you need right now are some quick wins – some things you can do that will make people happy quickly, and things that can be done without much cost. This is low-hanging fruit that can be picked without a high ladder; it is fruit that will sweeten things and make swallowing the more bitter pills a little easier. Here is what you need to do first:
1. Allow Medicare Patients to Use Drug Discounts
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*This blog post was originally published at Musings of a Distractible Mind*
October 7th, 2009 by SteveSimmonsMD in Primary Care Wednesdays
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“To see what is in front of one’s nose needs a constant struggle…” George Orwell
Do you know what the “P” in HIPAA stands for?
If you said “privacy” you are quite wrong. HIPAA stands for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and was originally intended to guarantee health insurance when someone changed jobs. But the word “portability” is a far cry from “privacy.”
Since April 14, 2003, patients have been required to sign these forms, creating the durable illusion that our medical records are private. We sign HIPAA forms when we see our dentists, doctors, and upon receipt of a host of other health-related services. Yet your personal health information is anything but private — and the more legislation Congress passes the more public this information becomes. Read more »
October 6th, 2009 by DrRich in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion
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In his previous post, DrRich used a combination of history, logic, and sleight of hand to convince even his most conservative readers that healthcare is indeed a right.
To summarize that erudite posting: The BOSS rule says it’s a right, so it’s a right – as long as we’re talking about a civil (or legal) right, and not about a natural (or inalienable) right.
A civil right is granted, more or less arbitrarily, by a government or a society, to some group of individuals, usually to redress a past grievance, or to attempt to achieve equality in outcomes, or for some other form of social justice. Civil rights almost invariably require a second group of individuals to sacrifice something of their own in order to satisfy the civil rights granted to the first group. So the granting of civil rights (as opposed to natural rights) will often be seen by at least some as being inherently oppressive, but if used appropriately civil rights can be very good for the furtherance of a stable and civil society. (As DrRich has pointed out, even our Founders – the great purveyors of natural rights – explicitly understood the importance of well-designed civil rights.) Civil rights, at least ideally, advance the virtue of justice, just as their creators claim. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at The Covert Rationing Blog*
October 6th, 2009 by EvanFalchukJD in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion
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For months, Congress has been debating health care reform proposals that would have the effect of dealing a heavy blow to the system of state-by-state insurance regulation. State governments have stood by, silently. I’ve been wondering (
here,
here and
here) when the states would start to raise objections.
Slowly, it’s starting to happen. What has been a mostly overlooked factor in the health care reform debate may end up being one of the most important.
In fourteen states, legislators are trying to pass constitutional amendments that would ban health insurance mandates. Meanwhile, a bi-partisan group of governors are objecting to provisions of the Baucus plan that would leave the cost of expanding Medicaid to the states (by contrast, the House bill provides federal money for this). It’s an emerging trend that may reflect growing unease in state governments. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at See First Blog*
October 6th, 2009 by Dr. Val Jones in Health Policy, Opinion
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This post appears on the Hastings Center’s Values and Health Reform Connection, a new group blog on American values and why they matter in health reform.
***
Values come from the gut, not the mind, and the gut is not a sophisticated thinker about the nuances of alternative policy options.
—Jim Sabin, MD Essay: Responsibility
I’m going to do something “radical” here in the spirit of Dr. Sabin’s opening quote – and speak from my gut on the topic of responsibility.
In my opinion, it’s human nature to shirk responsibility, and our current society is a great facilitator of that natural urge. The more wealthy and technologically comfortable we become, the fewer responsibilities we have (in terms of securing basic needs), and the more empowered we are to indulge our inner narcissism. Until we accept that we all have this selfish tendency, we’ll continue to point at others and engage in a blame game that keeps us all very much in the dark about what’s really going on. Read more »
