Friday, July 17 2009 @ 02:01 PM GMT+4 Contributed by: H
The easy part in Massachusetts' health reform efforts was getting people to sign up. The hard part is figuring out how to pay for it.
A state commission recommended yesterday that Massachusetts dramatically change how doctors and hospitals are paid, essentially putting providers on a budget as a way to control exploding healthcare costs and improve the quality of care.
This is huge. If this can be accomplished in Massachusetts, home of Mass General, B&W, Tufts and other cutting edge teaching facilities, it would demonstrate leadership for the entire nation. Clearly, leadership is not coming from Washington at a time when we need it the most.
Sometimes the tail wagging the dog is a good thing. This may be a case in point.
The Vermont Citizens Campaign for Health held a panel discussion on Wednesday night. A good deal of time was spent on what I call the "R" word; rationing. Without defining medical health rationing it is impossible to have a meaningful discussion about the merits of different healthcare reform models.
This proposal in Massachusetts is bold and necessary. It is an essential component to healthcare reform. I would have thought that Vermont would have been a better laboratory for these types of changes. There are numerous excuses why we are not.
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Health Care Reform in Massachusetts
Authored by: cgrotke on Friday, July 17 2009 @ 02:41 PM GMT+4
Did the panel come up with a good definition of rationing, and what that
would mean?
To some, rationing might sound extreme, as if there is only a little bit
and it must be shared among a large group - like a tiny bit of cheese for
a roomful of mice.
To others, it might sound like eliminating a bit of the excess at the top
and sharing the bounty far and wide.
Authored by: xteeth on Friday, July 17 2009 @ 09:05 PM GMT+4
For those of you who are interested in the topic, the New Yorker had a fascinating article May 31, I think exploring health care costs. (Frank James I think) The first explanation I have heard of why there are disparate costs even when there is no fraud.
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"Some people cause happiness wherever they go, others whenever they go." Oscar Wilde
would mean?
To some, rationing might sound extreme, as if there is only a little bit
and it must be shared among a large group - like a tiny bit of cheese for
a roomful of mice.
To others, it might sound like eliminating a bit of the excess at the top
and sharing the bounty far and wide.