Thread: 5 things you need to know about: health care reform

5 things you need to know about: health care reform

August 15, 2009

So far the debate about health care reform has been a thoughtful discussion about how best to reduce costs while improving care. Ha, ha. Not really. It's been a loud, ugly, confusing mess. Here are some things to consider when trying to sort it out:

Are there really going to be death panels? No one is going to force you to pull the plug on Aunt Myrtle, no matter what Sarah Palin says. There is some language in one of the proposed bills about voluntary end-of-life counseling and living wills. Comparing this to forced euthanasia is like saying that a bill making retirement planning easier would force Americans to quit their jobs.

So what is all this talk about government-run health care? If you like your employer's health plan, then you can keep it. If you don't have insurance, you can buy it either through a private insurer or through a government program. The logic behind government-sponsored health insurance is to create competition to drive down health care costs. Oh yeah, and all adults must have health insurance or they have to pay a fine.

How much is it going to cost? According the Kaiser Foundation, the plan will cost more than $1 trillion over the next 10 years. President Obama contends that health care reform will save money by eliminating expensive inefficiencies.

Really? How? That's the $1 trillion question. Critics say the proposed plans don't address the main driver of rising health care expenses, which is the rapid pace of technological innovation — from new drugs to diagnostic machines.

So what happens next? In the short term, lots and lots of yelling. Yippee for civil discourse. Once Congress gets back in session, expect massive revisions to the current bills.

— JENNIFER DAVIES

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/ ... ?uniontrib

RELATED

A blood pressure-raising debate on health care

http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-167215.html