IT'S ALL OUR FAULT!
No, Debbie Stabenow did not say that it's all our fault. All she was trying to do was de-politicize the debate about healthcare. So she invited a bunch of industry executives to what was supposed to be a non-political discussion of her idea: Rather than setting up a Medicare for All plan, we should allow people 50-65 to buy into Medicare. You would think that this was -- politically speaking -- fairly tame, right? Apparently not so. In the Modern Healthcare March 30 issue...
...we read what went on at the meeting. We read of the assertion of Rick Pollack -- CEO of the American Hospital Association -- that there wasn't enough money in M4A to cover the cost of treating patients, some of whom would be denied care as a result of it.
Chip Kahn, CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals, said that the ACA shouldn't be abolished entirely, and asked, “Why do we want to turn everything upside down when we know we then open ourselves up to a whole new set of problems?”
The businessmen agreed that policy reforms could only go so far. Banner Health CEO Peter Fine said. “I don’t know how you manage cost in healthcare until you manage usage.”
Anthony Barrueta, senior vice president of government relations for Kaiser Health Foundation Health Plan. said "Countries like Australia and New Zealand are essentially willing to say no to manufacturers of exorbitantly priced drugs. “The question is whether we can build that kind of dynamic into the American system … or is it impossible because of our culture because people are never willing to say no? Healthcare’s problem is related to behavior, Fine said. Everyone wants what they want instantaneously. You can change a business model, but changing a culture is way more difficult,” he said.
In other words, according to them the high expense in healthcare is not because of the profit motive driving eight-figure salaries of the CEOs, and it's not because they have to keep shareholder dividends competitive to attract investors, not because of the inflated bureaucratic overhead or the costly TV advertising, certainly not because of all the money spent on bribing legislators to vote their way, -- no no! It is because too many people want healthcare. And those pesky people want it whenever they get sick! That can cut into profits drastically! The solution is to "manage usage," or in plain English, ration it, make it less accessible to people, so they'll be "encouraged" to seek medical care less often, resulting in less healthcare for them, and more money for the shareholders, the CEOs, and others high on the food chain who would like to feed on us undisturbed by the higher taxes which would surely result from every sick person being treated.
You see, dear reader, as these corporate big-wigs see it, the problem is not their greed.
The problem is us.
Dio
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PPS: We know that there are plenty out there who have stories to tell -- stories of your trying to cope with our dysfunctional healthcare system. Trouble is, we don't know what these stories are! That's where you come in. If you have a story to tell, you can email me at indivisible12401@gmail.com. You can be as anonymous as you like. Thanks!
PPS: We know that there are plenty out there who have stories to tell -- stories of your trying to cope with our dysfunctional healthcare system. Trouble is, we don't know what these stories are! That's where you come in. If you have a story to tell, you can email me at indivisible12401@gmail.com. You can be as anonymous as you like. Thanks!
