New Research That Should Inspire the Candidates on Healthcare

[maddezmom]

New Research That Should Inspire the Candidates
By Ezekiel Emanuel
In this installment of Health Care Watch, Stuart M. Butler and Ezekiel Emanuel talk about what a new study by the Lewin Group tells us about the candidates’ health care proposals. Go to Mr. Butler’s post.

Ezekiel Emanuel, an oncologist, is the chairman of the department of bioethics at the Clinical Center of the National Institutes of Health. He is the author of “Health Care, Guaranteed: A Simple, Secure Solution for America.”(Full biography.)

In the final presidential debate, Bob Schieffer of CBS asked whether the downturn in the economy means that the focus of health care reform should become cost control rather than expanding access. Barack Obama rightly said we have to do both together. The Lewin Group, a nonpartisan consulting company, recently “ran the numbers” on the McCain and Obama health plans. The results are surprising — and show why Mr. Obama’s answer is right.

According to the Lewin analysis, Mr. McCain’s plan reduces the uninsured by 21 million, or about 45 percent, at a cost of about $200 billion per year. Mr. Obama’s plan reduces the uninsured by 27 million, or about 57 percent, at a cost of about $117 billion per year.

Interestingly, just a few months ago, the Lewin Group also ran the numbers on the health care reform proposal that has been introduced by Senators Ron Wyden, Democrat of Oregon, and Robert Bennett, Republican of Utah. Their plan eliminates all the uninsured — gets to 100 percent coverage — and requires no additional funding. Over 10 years it saves $1.4 trillion.

What is surprising — even shocking — and undermines the assumption behind Mr. Schieffer’s question is that more health care reform can cover more Americans and be cheaper. There is no reason to sacrifice coverage to get cost control. Expanding coverage the right way generates savings.

Mr. McCain’s plan makes only incremental changes, focusing on changing tax treatment of health insurance and fostering competition on the health insurance market by allowing cross state sales.

more:http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/17/new-research-that-should-inspire-the-candidates/

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

1. So providing coverage for everyone in this country is going to save 1.4 trillion?

I don't think that makes sense.

David

[Crunchy Frog]

2. We just need to provide mass euthanasia in this country.

That will certainly save a lot of money.