A better health care system starts with each one of us
Our health care system is broken. In Idaho alone, an estimated 200,000 residents have no health insurance. This creates a burden that taxes every inch of society's infrastructure, from personal relationships to professional opportunities.
The principles for reform, listed at the bottom of this editorial, would go a long way in providing a pathway to a workable, affordable and sustainable health care system. If there's a weakness, in our view the principles still put too much emphasis on the need for governmental funding and too little on personal responsibility.
Idaho legislators tend to agree that better health care coverage is critical to the state's well-being, but they also suggest that funding a comprehensive system will be a daunting task. Maybe universal health care is so important that taxpayers would be willing to shoulder a greater burden. At some point, we might all be asked that very question.
In the meantime, though, most of us have the wherewithal to significantly improve the system. Rather than pay an additional $50 a month in taxes for, say, catastrophic health care coverage for all, why not invest that in a health club membership or a home treadmill? For those who can't afford the $50 monthly outlay, investing in a good pair of sneakers and making a commitment to walk for 30 minutes every day would constitute a tremendous investment in one's health and the national health care system.
To ease the crisis, many Americans could eat better, drink less alcohol, quit smoking and trade TV or computer time in for those new sneakers. By taking better care of ourselves, our nation would see huge decreases in the incidence of heart disease, some forms of cancer, and perhaps even address some of the psychological problems underlying physical illnesses. Health and happiness tend to go hand in hand.
While we work as a state and a nation toward a better health care system, do everything you can now to take responsibility for your own condition. You could end up being a bigger part of the solution than you'd imagined.
Principles for Reform
of the U.S. Health Care System
1. Health care coverage for all is needed to ensure quality of care and to improve the health status of Americans.
2. The health care system in the U.S. must provide appropriate health care to all people within the U.S. borders, without unreasonable financial barriers to care.
3. Individuals and families must have catastrophic health coverage to provide protection from financial ruin.
4. Improvement of health care quality and safety must be the goal of all health interventions, so we can assure optimal outcomes for the resources expended.
5. In reforming the health care system, we as a society must respect the ethical imperative of providing health care to individuals, responsible stewardship of community resources, and the importance of personal health responsibility.
6. Access to and financing for appropriate health services must be a shared public/private cooperative effort, and a system which will allow individuals/employers to purchase additional services or insurance.
7. Cost management by all stakeholders, consistent with achieving quality health care, is critical to attaining a workable, affordable and sustainable health care system.
8. Less complicated administrative systems are essential to reduce costs, create a more efficient health care system and maximize funding for health care services.
9. Sufficient funds must be made available for research (basic, clinical, translational and health services), medical education, and comprehensive health information technology infrastructure as well as implementation.
10. Sufficient funds must be available for public health and other essential medical services to include, but not be limited to, preventive services, trauma care and mental health services.
11. Comprehensive medical liability reform is essential to ensure access to quality health care.