discusses the fact that 68 percent of voters have health insurance that they rate as good or excellent. He argues that this will be an obstacle to achieving health care reform, and I agree. Americans want to see everyone have access to high-quality, affordable health care, but not if it means their own health care or access will be worse than it is now. It seems reasonable enough; nobody wants reform that is going to make them worse off. To these people, health reform is a gamble. We won't know if reform makes each of us personally better or worse off until it actually gets implemented. So why take a gamble on health reform if you're happy with what you have and it might make you worse off. Essentially, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
The problem is that too many people don't see that the system is broken (perhaps "broke" is the better word, since varying estimates show that Medicare will go bankrupt within the next 10 years). The cost of delivering health care continues to rise. Most working-age citizens still get their health insurance from their job, so people lose their coverage when they lose their jobs. More and more employers are shifting more of the costs of health insurance onto employees or are dropping health coverage altogether. Medical bills are the second-most common reason for filing bankruptcy in America. The uninsured are twice as likely to file for bankruptcy than those with health insurance, though nearly a third of all Americans who file bankruptcy for medical reasons have health insurance. In essence, the insured pay for the health care we provide to the uninsured, and at a greater cost. Those without coverage are more likely to seek care in the emergency room, the most expensive place to get care. Meanwhile, the uninsured are charged more for the care they get, since they don't have insurance companies to negotiate the discounted care those with insurance receive. And to top it off, having health insurance doesn't even guarantee that you won't need to file bankruptcy because of medical debt.
Clearly, Congress, the Administration and the key players advocating for health care reform aren't getting this message across. Though 68 percent of Americans may rate their current insurance as good or excellent, our current health care system isn't sustainable. It's broke, and now is the time to fix it. Health care reform is not a gamble; it's the only chance we have to come out ahead.
The problem is that too many people don't see that the system is broken (perhaps "broke" is the better word, since varying estimates show that Medicare will go bankrupt within the next 10 years). The cost of delivering health care continues to rise. Most working-age citizens still get their health insurance from their job, so people lose their coverage when they lose their jobs. More and more employers are shifting more of the costs of health insurance onto employees or are dropping health coverage altogether. Medical bills are the second-most common reason for filing bankruptcy in America. The uninsured are twice as likely to file for bankruptcy than those with health insurance, though nearly a third of all Americans who file bankruptcy for medical reasons have health insurance. In essence, the insured pay for the health care we provide to the uninsured, and at a greater cost. Those without coverage are more likely to seek care in the emergency room, the most expensive place to get care. Meanwhile, the uninsured are charged more for the care they get, since they don't have insurance companies to negotiate the discounted care those with insurance receive. And to top it off, having health insurance doesn't even guarantee that you won't need to file bankruptcy because of medical debt.
Clearly, Congress, the Administration and the key players advocating for health care reform aren't getting this message across. Though 68 percent of Americans may rate their current insurance as good or excellent, our current health care system isn't sustainable. It's broke, and now is the time to fix it. Health care reform is not a gamble; it's the only chance we have to come out ahead.
the health care reform 'message' needs to be reframed.
ReplyDeletethe insurance most have today is different from just a few years ago. each year, the benefits become more limited, more restrictive and have far greater out of pocket exposure. all this for an ever higher premium.
so, those of us that are happy with our present coverage, would be wise to acknowledge that based on recent experience, our coverage is changing.
the question then becomes, 'would we most happy with the change that's coming (if we continue the way things are going) or would we be happier still with reform
The default plan is the status quo, which, as Obama noted last week, is “guaranteed to double your premiums, cause more Americans to lose their coverage and create larger budget deficits over the next 10 years.”
ReplyDeleteHidden Costs of Health Care: Why Americans are Paying More but Getting Less
ReplyDeletehttp://www.healthreform.gov/reports/hiddencosts/hiddencosts.pdf