A past article by John Goodman, President and CEO of the National Center for Policy Analysis, indicates some major problems with the current healthcare reform initiatives by the Obama Administration. In his May 26th "Health Alert" message, Goodman states: President Obama is about to repeat that same mistake that Hillary Clinton made 15 years ago by not endorsing Bob Dole’s health bill. The smartest thing Obama could do is endorse a bill sponsored by Sens. Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Richard Burr (R-NC), along with Reps. Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Devin Nunes (R-CA), [hereinafter called the Coburn bill]. Here's why:
• Independent analyses estimate the Coburn bill would cut the number of uninsured in half, the same result that is expected under Obama's plan.
• The Coburn bill is revenue neutral — requiring no net increased taxes or spending; whereas Obama's plan will cost $1.5 trillion over 15 years and maybe more - even though they both achieve the same goal. (I'll explain this truly fascinating result in a future Alert.)
• The Coburn bill makes coverage more universal by shifting tax benefits from those who earn more to those who earn less — precisely what Obama has committed to from the get-go.
• The Coburn bill liberates millions of poor people from Medicaid rationing and gives them access to the same kind of insurance middle-income families have, whereas Obama's plan would do to reverse.
• The Coburn bill gives people strong incentives to control costs and they might actually work, whereas Obama's $150 billion a year in extra spending will almost certainly add to health care inflation.
In some ways, this is the most "liberal" proposal on the table made by the most conservative senator on Capitol Hill; and it achieves all of Obama's goals as well or much better than Obama's own plan! Goodman further states in his recent blog that Paul Krugman was absolutely giddy the other day when conferees managed to reduce the cost of the Kennedy bill to $597 billion, down from the previous level of $1 trillion plus. Then, in the same column, he admitted that the total cost is likely to be more than double that amount. Here's a way to keep score without being privy to the behind-closed-doors deliberations: There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch (TANSTAAFL). Independent analysts pegged the cost of Obama's health plan last summer at about $1.5 trillion over ten years and predicted it would cut the number of uninsured in half. Nothing has really changed since then except the hard-to-believe spectacle of leading Congressional health reformers - for the first time in their adult lives - actually coming face to face with the economic reality of their ritual campaign rhetoric. When all is said and done the cost is still going to be about $1.5 trillion. The only real question is: who is going to pay that cost?
As a professor of healthcare management, I believe that the cost issue is a vital component of healthcare reform. With the continued bailout of major corporations, the propping up of the US financial system and the vast stimulus packages that have been enacted (as well as other unknown government expenditures), how can we afford a $1.5 trillion healthcare reform initiative that may potentially create more problems than solutions. While most Americans believe that our healthcare system is seriously deficient and in need of some permanent repairs, the course we choose to take for the future and the huge debt we create in the name of reform may not truly fix the system and create the appropriate change we are hoping to achieve. Additionally, how we define healthcare reform will determine the direction and scope of the Nation's health, now, and for the future. These are just a few of the many ideas that are explored in the healthcare management concentration within the MBA Program at Belmont University.