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Healthcare in America is the Pits
By: S. Reid Warren III,
Elverson, 05/15/2008 (Tri County Record)
In
a column in the Tri County Record entitled
"Hand control of health care back to
individuals," Congressman Joe Pitts comes up
with arguments and "solutions" that are worn
out - been there done that.
Representative Pitts appears to argue that
he's out for the little guy and all the
little guy needs is for government to get
out of the regulation of health care.
This is a bankrupt concept, and even
Representative Pitts admits that the U.S.
health care system is the most expensive in
the world even while it lags in consumer
satisfaction. Which health care systems in
the modern world are half as costly as the
U.S. system, cover all of the population and
have overall consumer satisfaction? Why,
those systems in which taxpayer-funded
universal health care are regulated by the
national government. In effect, those
systems in countries like Germany, France,
Canada and England, to name a few, represent
the ideal that Representative Pitts wants
for Americans - consumer ownership not only
of individual health treatment choices, but
of the entire health care system. These are
systems quite like Medicare in this country.
Health care systems in other modern nations
are not held hostage to insurance companies
that are out to make a large profit. Health
care decisions in those countries are not
made by insurance-company, managed-care
bureaucrats who are more concerned by the
bottom line than they are about an
individual's attempt to manage his or her
health care options. Health care funding in
those countries is primarily a one-source,
tax-based funding system rather than a mish
mash of a myriad of insurance companies, all
with their own procedures, forms,
regulations and dis-allowals which the
doctor's offices have to deal with
differently for each patient who comes
through the front door.
Representative Pitts is touting Health
Savings Accounts that he claims turn more
control of health care decisions over to
individuals. Poppycock. Health Savings
Accounts are merely more of the failed
practices that have existed in this country
ever since insurance companies became in
charge of how health care is funded and
managed. It is disingenuous of
Representative Pitts to claim that
government controls healthcare provision in
this country. Insurance companies control it
- that is why it is so expensive, that is
why there are so many disallowals, that is
why the insurance companies cherry-pick only
healthy individuals to insure and that is
why insurance companies charge 15 percent
management fees while Medicare costs only
two percent.
Representative Pitts, like all government
employees, enjoys comprehensive and
life-long health care. It is taxpayer
funded. We, all of his constituents, are
envious of his healthcare package. Why
shouldn't all of us have the worry-free
health care coverage enjoyed by those who
represent us in government? As our
representatives, they voted themselves this
munificent health care package, but have so
far fallen way short of helping the rest of
us to attain the same level of care. As a
representative of the people, it is time
Representative Pitts started looking after
the people's health care by working with his
colleagues to radically change the funding
and delivery of health care in this country.
How about it Representative Pitts? What are
you going to do for us? And please, no more
piecemeal, patchwork, private sector,
insurance company recommendations. They are
the problem - not the solution.
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