We Can Win on Healthcare
by Rep. Tom Price
07/09/2009

Few if any political proposals in our lifetime will impact our lives in such a personal way as the government takeover of health care sought by the President and Democrats in Washington. If health care reform is taken down the wrong path, it will end in nothing short of disaster.

This is a make-or-break moment for Americans and the history of our great nation. And it is a battle we can win.

Two paths for health care reform are possible. One preserves and bolsters the ability for patients to control their own health care and make medical decisions independently with their doctors. The other leads to a government takeover of the health care industry that will permanently place Washington between you and the care you seek.

As a physician, I have always fought for patient-centered health care reform that promotes six principles of care: accessibility, affordability, quality, choices, innovation, and responsiveness. Surely none of these principles are improved by greater involvement of the federal government. Unfortunately, Democrats in charge have largely (and predictably) ignored the ideas of Republicans and are marching forward with a government-centered health care plan.

One of the most basic precepts of medicine is that you cannot effectively treat the problem until you get the diagnosis right. Yet Democrats have terribly misdiagnosed the disease in American health care. As with nearly everything, they have decided the problem in our health care delivery system is a shortage of government intervention.

Having personally navigated the federal health care system of our first “public optionâ€