From the TIMES-LEADER:
…Mr. Levinson and I are in agreement that we must recognize ways to reduce skyrocketing health care costs, and that states have a significant opportunity to do so. To tame future health care cost growth, and fully address Mr. Levinson’s valid concerns, we must look to all options. Specifically, I concur with Mr. Levinson’s call to: encourage employers to drive workers to healthier behaviors, known as workplace wellness programs; connect hospital and doctor reimbursement to providing more efficient care; and continue research of the best practices in medicine.
The health care law passed earlier this year began this process. On the issue of workplace wellness programs, it provides $200 million in grants to small employers to implement programs and allows larger employers already using these plans to increase the size of the incentives. As to Mr. Levinson’s suggestion to use measures of quality care in determining reimbursement, the bill implements pilot programs in Medicare, the largest government insurance program, to pay doctors based on the quality of the care they provide – not just on how many patients they see…
The passage of the health care reform law took a significant step toward addressing health care costs. Objective analysis by the Congressional Budget Office expects it to reduce the federal budget deficit by as much as $1.2 trillion over the next 20 years. However, I have long believed that our debate about affordable health care reform did not end with the passage of the recent law; rather it began in earnest. For example, I have argued that we must continue to address costs by removing the federal anti-trust exemption that allows insurance companies to collude on pricing. We also should consider an often-discussed solution of breaking down state barriers to increase competition and allow individuals to purchase insurance from other states – as long as we also ensure a minimum level of benefits are required to prevent insurance companies from moving their headquarters to states that now have the lowest standards for care…
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