Health Insurance Reform

O.K. I have held off as long as I can in making comments about recent events. We have seen a 2,700 page bill (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) passed that shifts, somewhat, who/how health care products are purchased and does little to change the product itself. However, it is true that it includes some initiatives to change the product, but in a top-down fashion. Top-down is an approach that all of history confirms is fundamentally flawed. How much more evidence do we need? Real health care, rather than health insurance, reform has to come from the bottom up or it results in just another system of games, and manipulations in order to get a bigger piece of the public coffers. At the least, we can look forward to a more complicated gaming system.
Anyone who believes the CBO forecasts of lowered costs is delusional. Again, the plan doesn't promise much effectual change to the product itself which contains 40-50% waste comprised of:
- Defensive Medicine – 30-40%
- Administrative Costs -20-30%
- Products and services not improving outcome – 10-30%
- Duplicative Services – 10-20%

Certainly, I am pleased to see that 32 million people will theoretically have more access to care. Extending the social contract appears to be an immediately, honorable undertaking. However, how honorable is it if it saddles our children with insurmountable debt combined with a pervasive sense of entitlement? Amazingly, it has already started. This is a true story... from an M.D. on 3/23/2010:

“A guy called my office today wanting to schedule his "free complete physical."  I kid you not. He yelled at my receptionist when she explained we didn't provide free physicals. "Don't you people listen to the news?! The President signed free health care into law yesterday." He ended by threatening to report us to Consumer Affairs.”

Actually, there are some hidden gems of opportunity to positively change the system that are hidden deep with the pages of the legislation. Once the politics plays out a bit, and key players are named, I will post some comment.