Public Option Vital to Health Reform

[Better Believe It]

Public Option Vital to Health Reform
By Lois Quam
September 10, 2009
Lois Quam is the CEO of Tysvar, a strategic advisory firm focused on health care and the new green economy, and a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. From 1998 to 2007, she was the CEO of Ovations, a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group, which provided health coverage to older Americans and low income families.


I was fortunate to be invited to attend the President's speech last night as a guest of Representative Keith Ellison. Like many supporters of a new public option health plan sitting in the House gallery, I was gratified to hear the President reiterate his continued support for creating such a plan. As a former executive in the health insurance industry, I worked with Medicare and Medicaid and saw firsthand the vital role these public options play in our health care system. For health reform to be most effective, I believe a public option similar to Medicare should be available to all Americans.

Despite the criticism the proposed public option has received from conservatives, existing public options like Medicare remain popular with beneficiaries. Before Medicare, about half of America's seniors lacked hospital insurance, 25% went without medical care due to cost, and one-third lived in poverty. Today, nearly all seniors have access to affordable care, and we've cut the number living in poverty by more than half. In these troubling economic times, Medicaid is needed more than ever as more people lose their jobs and fall below the poverty line. The Veterans Administration health budget will be significantly increased in next year's budget. These public options provide access to care. They are affordable. They give us peace of mind and security.

A new public health insurance plan would offer a national safety net ensuring all Americans have access to a good quality insurance option. This would be particularly important in rural areas and inner cities, where private insurance options are not always available or affordable. Such a plan would also effectively sets a standard for the marketplace by keeping administrative costs low and encouraging companies to innovate by offering unique benefits above and beyond the basic benefit set. A public option also provides a way to respond to unique public health challenges in areas where private insurers may face shareholder concerns about the financial risk. For example, Medicare expanded coverage to Americans with end stage renal disease in the 1970s because those individuals were uninsurable in the private marketplace.

When we enact universal coverage for a group of Americans, like we did with Medicare or the VA, it works. When we expand coverage, like we did at the state level with MinnesotaCare, it works. This year, we can complete the job and deliver more affordable care and coverage to all Americans. Given its historic success, a public option is the right option for health reform. The time to act is now.

Please read the complete article at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lois-quam/public-option-vital-to-he_b_282886.html

[Oregone]

1. Only vital if everyone could affordably access it

And not be firewalled

[wildflower]

2. "existing public options like Medicare"

That phrase ought to be repeated often for those who like Medicare but think a public option is "socialism."

[andym]

3. This is the kind of article that helps motivate people to change things-- good work, rec'd n/t