So we need a new Healthcare plan in America. President Obama has classified it as a crisis. Of course he also claimed that passing the stimulus would also stem the unemployment crisis and keep the unemployment numbers below 8% – it it’s at 9.5% and climbing as per this last weeks Labor Department numbers. He said that GM and Chrysler were in crisis claiming that both were to big to fail and without their bailout money that would happen – uh, didn’t they have to file bankruptcy anyway.
So with the President and his cheerleaders claiming that we need to have a new Healthcare Plan and the GOP suggesting one of their own, it seems like the right time to address the issues that will make a difference to solving the problems faced by the U.S. Healthcare Industry.
1. Legal system reform
2. Insurance industry reform
3. Increased border control
4. Citizenship reform
5. Understanding the numbers
Legal reform is necessary due to the ease at which so many people and their attorneys sue in today’s America. This sue-happy public makes it necessary for doctors to carry insurance that is both expensive and inordinate compared with other professions. That high cost for insurance is then passed on to the patient.
But that is not the only expense. Due to the ease at which we as a culture will opt to sue, many doctors refuse to make diagnosis on their own resulting in them forwarding patients on to a string of specialists in order to cover themselves from liability. This is not to say that there aren’t cases of malpractice, just that there are too many accusations of such and with each accusation, whether true or false, it increases the costs of medical malpractice insurance, thereby increasing the cost of our healthcare, and thereby increasing the cost of our health insurance.
Insurance reform must happen both for private insurers and for public insurance. That’s right, there already is public healthcare in the form of CHP, Medicare, and Medicaid. One thing all of these healthcare plans have in common is there lack of agreement with the healthcare profession as to how much a service should cost. Most pay only a percentage of what is billed to them. As a result of this practice, many medical facilities will inflate their costs to cover the loss. So lets say an insurance carrier only pays $50.00 on an $80.00 tab, well the next time the bill will be $100.00 in order to make up some of the difference. This costs the insurance companies more money, which in turn causes them to raise the rates on what they charge us – more money out of our pockets.
Now the next couple of issues get into some touchy subjects for some but are MAJOR contributors to our healthcare problems in the U.S. To not address these issues is probably the more politically correct route to take, but not addressing issues like this has put this country into the position it is in. Border control is necessary and crucial to reigning in the problems faced by the healthcare industry. Medicare and Medicaid programs are failing and are actually broke as of April 26th of this year. Much of the reason they are failing is due to the high number of Illegal Aliens in this country, primarily from south of the border. Enforcement of current immigrations laws and the control of the southern border are imperative to solving the healthcare “crisis” here in America.
Another touchy subject is in a reformation of our citizenship process to eliminate the matter of anchor babies. An anchor baby is a baby born of non-citizens and given citizenship based on them being born here in America. Too many illegal aliens are granted residency in America and free access to our healthcare system based on the fact that their babies are born here (many on purpose) and are granted citizenship at birth. In order to seriously address the problems faced by the healthcare industry in America this change to the citizenship policy of America must be changed.
Lastly, the number of uninsured in America must be understood for what they are. President Obama claimed this week that there are as many as 50 million uninsured people in America; however, he never does use the term citizens and he never expounds on those numbers. After looking at many sources it is still hard to come to a solid conclusion.
It is believed that the actual number of uninsured in America is somewhere between 42 to 46 million. Of those it is believed that 11 to 13 million are illegal aliens. That is clearly 1/4th of the uninsured right up front. It is estimated that 10 to 15 million of them are 18 to 30 year olds and just aren’t carrying any sort of insurance due to a personal choice. Between these two groups it takes the total to somewhere between 21 to 28 million; however, left out of these estimates are folks that carry only catastrophic healthcare policies and those who just are uninformed of their options. So the number of CITIZENS that cannot get healthcare in this country is probably closer to 5 to 12 million and even that is debatable.
Is our healthcare system perfect in America? No – not by any means.
Is it in the crisis that President Obama says it is? Absolutely Not!
Now let’s be honest, back in the good ole days healthcare was still expensive, but not to the extent that it is now; however, back in the day people paid their way (in full or in trade). People were not as dependent on the government and did not have the inclination to sue as they do now. What we need is reform of the legal system, reform of the insurance system, reform of the citizenship policy, enforcement of existing border policy, and a basic understanding of the issues as a whole. What we don’t need is either of the policies suggested by either party in Washington. What this issue needs is strong leadership to make the hard choices, but with the lobbyist-dependent, career-oriented politicians that permeate the halls of Congress and the White House, that leadership is not available.
Now Paging Some Leadership,
Bill
