Re: Officials opposed to U.S. health-care law seeking interstate compact
Letter to the Editor
The Washington Post
September 19, 2011
Dear Editor:
I feel that the proposed compact highlighted in “Officials opposed to U.S. health-care law seeking interstate compact” (Sept. 17) is not the solution to our nation’s health care problems. A lot of issues could potentially arise from this proposition, but my main concern is that this compact does little to address the financial woes of the U.S. health care system as pointed out by Anne Dunkelberg. Even though the U.S. spends the most money of any nation on health care, underfunding in our health care system continues to be a problem regardless of where the power lies. Instead of spending resources and time engaging in campaigns that have sparse support, I urge government officials to direct their efforts to a bigger issue that many would like to eliminate: high health care costs. In particular, some steps I believe our government can take to lower costs are to establish and enforce regulations that prevent medical fraud and to offer incentives for health care providers who promote preventative care and eliminate unnecessary interventions. We can even look abroad to countries such as Switzerland and Germany for further cost-effective ideas for a health care system.
Sincerely,
Yangdi Chen
Berkeley, CA, Sept. 19, 2011
Dear Yangdi:
ReplyDeleteYour letter addresses a public health policy topic and provides a policy solution that focuses on systemic changes for what you think should be done. It's clearly written although it would have been stronger had it presented fresh facts or a unique perspective. I liked the fact that at the end of the letter you propose to look to other countries for examples of good policy.
Good job!
Sole
I agree with Yangdi that the interstate compact proposal does not propose any effective solution to the high costs of healthcare in the US. I am truly disappointed that these state representatives place more importance on their political ideology than on their constituents. According to the article, participating states, if the compact were passed, would not qualify for receiving federal funding currently designated for states in cases of emergencies (e.g. if the state has a budget crisis). Thus, the compact would hypothetically entail states curtailing the level of funding for the health services of the most at-risk populations currently covered by Medicare and Medicaid (i.e. the elderly, disabled, and low-income). This would be a potential political nightmare for states and could also exacerbate the financial and health concerns of the nation’s uninsured and underinsured. Thankfully, many political actors cited in the article deny the interstate compact has any credible chance at becoming a law. Let’s hope the nation can muster the political will to prevent the grave consequences of such a bill and pass legislation that reduces health costs in ways that don’t negatively impact the health of people living in America.
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