BCBS NC, Moses Cone and Universal Health Care
The News-Record carries an appealing story from Dr. Weissman of Eagle Internal Medicine, explaining, in his humble opinion, why the problem between Moses Cone & Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina is a problem for everyone. I agree with Dr. Weissman, more than I usually agree with anyone that I don't know actually. Dr. Weissman ends his well written opinion piece with the following thought:
I'm not going to get into the wonders of the insurance world, I think the article does a pretty good job of summarising the key points. I will however add that NC, and the country, should re-align our views of health and the right to make money. Obviously increasing numbers of uninsured, working age/working individuals represents a real public health concern. I would suggest a massive strategy to promote the use of General Practioners combined with mandatory health insurance for all residents.
GPs need to be the gatekeepers of the healthcare system, steering people into the specialist fields on referrals, reducing the traffic into hospitals for non-threatening conditions. Additionally, insurance companies need to be 'forced' to provide insurance to people regardless of their pre-existing conditions, a basic insurance plan with set parameters for treatment - negotiated by all stakeholders. I also think if you don't claim, you should get your premium money back, atleast a portion of it, as a reward for not freaking out when you find a little bump on your eye-brow. It's a win-win combination.
We'll get into adverse selection and moral hazard later in lesson 2. Lesson 3 will develop our understanding of why a free market can't survive without government intervention. We think.
The U.S. health care financial situation is extremely complicated and will not be fixed by one or two changes. Indeed, the entire Western world is facing an increase in health care expense, regardless of what financial system is used. However, continuing to make health care a private good is blatantly unfair and violates what we as a country stand for. Imagine if we made the police a private good. Wealthy people would band together and be protected, leaving the remainder to disorder and anarchy. We can and should do better. During this upcoming election year, I suggest that you look carefully at the various proposals for changing health care finances.Word, get em doc.
I'm not going to get into the wonders of the insurance world, I think the article does a pretty good job of summarising the key points. I will however add that NC, and the country, should re-align our views of health and the right to make money. Obviously increasing numbers of uninsured, working age/working individuals represents a real public health concern. I would suggest a massive strategy to promote the use of General Practioners combined with mandatory health insurance for all residents.
GPs need to be the gatekeepers of the healthcare system, steering people into the specialist fields on referrals, reducing the traffic into hospitals for non-threatening conditions. Additionally, insurance companies need to be 'forced' to provide insurance to people regardless of their pre-existing conditions, a basic insurance plan with set parameters for treatment - negotiated by all stakeholders. I also think if you don't claim, you should get your premium money back, atleast a portion of it, as a reward for not freaking out when you find a little bump on your eye-brow. It's a win-win combination.
We'll get into adverse selection and moral hazard later in lesson 2. Lesson 3 will develop our understanding of why a free market can't survive without government intervention. We think.
Labels: Healthy NC
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