By ROBERT REICH
I hope when he tells America how he aims to tame future budget deficits the President doesn’t accept conventional Wasington wisdom that the biggest problem in the federal budget is Medicare (and its poor cousin Medicaid).
Medicare isn’t the problem. It’s the solution.
The real problem is the soaring costs of health care that lie beneath Medicare. They’re costs all of us are bearing in the form of soaring premiums, co-payments, and deductibles.
Americans spend more on health care per person than any other advanced nation and get less for our money. Yearly public and private healthcare spending is $7,538 per person. That’s almost two and a half times the average of other advanced nations.
Yet the typical American lives 77.9 years – less than the average 79.4 years in other advanced nations. And we have the highest rate of infant mortality of all advanced nations.
Medical costs are soaring because our health-care system is totally screwed up. Doctors and hospitals have every incentive to spend on unnecessary tests, drugs, and procedures.
You have lower back pain? Almost 95% of such cases are best relieved through physical therapy. But doctors and hospitals routinely do expensive MRI’s, and then refer patients to orthopedic surgeons who often do even more costly surgery. Why? There’s not much money in physical therapy.
Your diabetes, asthma, or heart condition is acting up? If you go to the hospital, 20 percent of the time you’re back there within a month. You wouldn’t be nearly as likely to return if a nurse visited you at home to make sure you were taking your medications. This is common practice in other advanced countries. So why don’t nurses do home visits to Americans with acute conditions? Hospitals aren’t paid for it.
America spends $30 billion a year fixing medical errors – the worst rate among advanced countries. Why? Among other reasons because we keep patient records on computers that can’t share the data. Patient records are continuously re-written on pieces of paper, and then re-entered into different computers. That spells error.
Meanwhile, administrative costs eat up 15 to 30 percent of all healthcare spending in the United States. That’s twice the rate of most other advanced nations. Where does this money go? Mainly into collecting money: Doctors collect from hospitals and insurers, hospitals collect from insurers, insurers collect from companies or from policy holders.
A major occupational category at most hospitals is “billing clerk.” A third of nursing hours are devoted to documenting what’s happened so insurers have proof.
Trying to slow the rise in Medicare costs doesn’t deal with any of this. It will just limit the amounts seniors can spend, which means less care. As a practical matter it means more political battles, as seniors – whose clout will grow as boomers are added to the ranks – demand the limits be increased. (If you thought the demagoguery over “death panels” was bad, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.)
Paul Ryan’s plan – to give seniors vouchers they can cash in with private for-profit insurers — would be even worse. It would funnel money into the hands of for-profit insurers, whose administrative costs are far higher than Medicare.
So what’s the answer? For starters, allow anyone at any age to join Medicare. Medicare’s administrative costs are in the range of 3 percent. That’s well below the 5 to 10 percent costs borne by large companies that self-insure. It’s even further below the administrative costs of companies in the small-group market (amounting to 25 to 27 percent of premiums). And it’s way, way lower than the administrative costs of individual insurance (40 percent). It’s even far below the 11 percent costs of private plans under Medicare Advantage, the current private-insurance option under Medicare.
In addition, allow Medicare – and its poor cousin Medicaid – to use their huge bargaining leverage to negotiate lower rates with hospitals, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies. This would help move health care from a fee-for-the-most-costly-service system into one designed to get the highest-quality outcomes most cheaply.
Estimates of how much would be saved by extending Medicare to cover the entire population range from $58 billion to $400 billion a year. More Americans would get quality health care, and the long-term budget crisis would be sharply reduced.
Let me say it again: Medicare isn’t the problem. It’s the solution.
Robert Reich served as the 22nd United States Secretary of Labor under President William Jefferson Clinton from 1992 to 1997. He blogs regularly at Robert Reich, where this post first appeared.
A. Harrison Barnes
Mr. Barnes has a lofty goal of ending unemployment. He hopes to do this by making job searching much easier
http://aharrisonbarnes.dtprofile.com/
lose weight, weight loss problems
http://www.bestofyounow.com
Weight Loss Problems: How can I lose weight fast and burn belly fat to get in shape. Get proven weight loss tips here.
weight loss
cr8traffic, Hampshire SEO
SEO Hampshire, UK. for a professional, successful solution to getting traffic to your website, sales for your businees, and profits to your bottom line. Best Hampshire SEO.
http://www.cr8traffic.com
SEO hampshire
keynetics, video, affiliate, too long to show
http://yourtheir.lazymrketr.hop.clickbank.net
In “Confessions of a Lazy Super-Affiliate,” he shows you his
exact models for making brainless, hands-off commissions and
product sales with a methodical, LAZY approach.
first, marketing, inc
fire Rush Limbaugh
http://www.change.org/petitions/clear-channel-communications-fire-rush-limbaugh
He disrespects Women:
Student: Rush Limbaugh ‘slut’ comment out of bounds
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/73530.html#ixzz1nwLl9sIP
The Georgetown University law student who was called a âslutâ by Rush Limbaugh for testifying on Capitol Hill about womenâs access to contraception condemned the conservative radio host Thursday night for remarks âoutside the bounds of civil discourse.â
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/73530.html#ixzz1nwLtO8fy
Rush Limbaugh
web, affordable
Rock solid affordable web hosting services. 4-domain & 6-business tool package incl Autoreponders, blogger builder, Video producer, conference sys, prospecting sys, marketing academy. 7 day trial.
http://bearnbee.hostthenprofit.com/htp/
services, hosting
oral sex, hardcore, blowjobs
http://www.orgasmdaily.com/videos/64684.html
Lucy Thai now is all-American. Speaks like that, dresses up like that and sucks American dicks. What other proof does the government need to give her American papers?
handjobs, brian surewood, luci thai
overdraw bank, overdraw archery, two, overdraw arrow rest, overdraw rest, overdraw english, compound bow overdraw, overdraw harmonica
overdraw.de is your first and best source for all of the information youâre looking for. From general topics to more of what you would expect to find here, overdraw.de has it all. We hope you find what you are searching for!
http://overdraw.de/
2 overdraw, overdraw dictionary, overdraw fee meaning, overdraw 3d, overdraw graphics, overdraw two worlds, overdraw bow
trading stock market, how to stock trading, Stock Trading How To
Like to become a more confident and profitable stock trader? If so, using a tool like, Stock Market Mastery Software, allows you to gain the upper hand when trading the stock market. You don’t really need to do all the analysis with this method, as your smart software will alert you and tell you what to do and when to do it.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007QEHI5I
stock trading, stock market trading
war of warcraft
{Basics|Fundamentals} About {one|1|a single|one particular} of {Best|Greatest|Very best|Finest|Ideal|Most effective} {Pc|Computer} Games Ever
{World|Globe|Planet} of Warcraft {contains|consists of} {a variety of|a number of|many different|various|a range of|several different} mechanisms for player versus player (PvP) play. Players on player versus {environment|atmosphere} (PvE) servers can opt to “flag” themselves, {making|creating|generating|producing} themselves attackable to players {of the|from the|in the|with the} opposite faction.[36] {Depending on|Based on|According to|Determined by} the mode {of the|from the|in the|with the} realm, PvP combat {between|in between|among|amongst} members of opposing factions is {possible|feasible|achievable|attainable|doable|probable} at {almost|nearly|virtually|practically|pretty much|just about} any time or {location|place} {in the|within the|inside the} game world-the only exception {being|becoming|getting} the {starting|beginning} zones, {where|exactly where} t
http://games.tiscali.cz/world-of-warcraft-8245
make money working at home, money making classified advertisements
http://bigcash.zipnadazilch.com/index.php?referral=409049
Get in now to make huge amounts of cash everyday with this absolutely free program. It cost you nothing .
Big Cash ZIp Nada Zilch
get back your ex, how to win your ex back
http://gettingbackyourextips.com
This site is a step by step tutorial filled with information on getting back your ex.
getting back your ex
Dentist Colchester
{Dentist Colchester} {-|–|:|*} {video|video clip|movie|online video} {on|upon|about|in} {two|2|a couple of|a pair of} {friends|buddies|pals|close friends} {talking about|referring to|discussing|speaking about} {their|their own|their particular|his or her} {teeth|tooth|the teeth|enamel} {and how|and just how|and the way|and exactly how} {one of them|one of these|one|one too} {had|experienced|acquired|got} {such a|this type of|this kind of|a real} {terrifying|frightening|horrifying|scary} {experience|encounter|expertise|knowledge} {from|through|coming from|via} {her|the woman’s|the girl|your ex} {last|final|previous|very last} {dentist|dental professional|dental office|dental practice} {that she|that they|she} {has not been|is not|hasn’t been|will not be} {back|back again|again|rear} {since|because|given that|considering that}.
{She|Your woman|The lady|The girl} {now has|presently has|is now offering|presenting} {bleeding|blood loss|hemorrhaging|hemorrhage} {gums|gum area|nicotine gums|gum line} {and|as we
http://youtu.be/Bii98CzyM-E
home based business that actually works, best home based businesses
http://mailmasterx.com
Register to see how easy it is to find local businesses that wants your help
a home based business that works
How To Start a Business From Home, small business, home business
Start your money machines by re-investing a small amount of your earnings and creating your business via outsourcing, to take advantage of new market opportunities, while you are employed. In fact you can even do it for free.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005IIY3ZM
Become Rich, make money from home
restaurant fans, exhaust fan kitchen, Restaurant Exhaust Fans
Buy a new or replacement fan for your commercial restaurant kitchen. Exhaust fans constructed with heavy gauge aluminum. Direct drive motors and belt drive motors are weather-tight. Exhaust Fans and Make-Up Air Fans Fast and Easy! Compare Today!
http://www.restaurantexhaustfans.com/
kitchen exhaust fans, kitchen exhaust
Florida, Miami
{Imagine the|Think of the|Think about the|Suppose the} {kids|children|youngsters|little ones} {all|just about all|almost all|most} {being|becoming|getting|staying} {happy|pleased|content|satisfied} {and|as well as|and also|along with} {enjoying|taking pleasure in|experiencing|savoring} {life|existence|lifestyle|living}, {splashing|spilling|playing|splattering} {on the|around the|about the|for the} {beach|seaside|seashore|beach front}, {playing|actively playing|enjoying|taking part in} {in the|within the|inside the|inside} waves-life {just|simply|merely|only} doesnâÂÂt {get any|have any} {better|much better|far better|greater}.
http://www.miamipackages.me/
packages, travel
study methods, study tips, best ways to study
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005FY610O
Discover the best way to study in this kindle book on Amazon. Want to know how to study? Start using these techniques right now.
studying tips, best way to study
metalware recession buster prices, recession buster, prices buster recession metalware
http://metalwarerecessionbusterprices.com
metalwarerecessionbusterprices.com
metalware recession buster prices this is a great site
metalware prices, metalware recession
http://wwwmagazintrendi.com modaya dair
hair salon consulting, hair salon consultancy
http://www.facebook.com/HairSalonConsulting
Let worldwide salon guru Michael Colosi show you how his hair salon consulting can drastically increase the profitability of your hair salon.
salon consulting
how to reduce tummy, how to get abs, Get A Flat Stomach
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007XK7NA0
Get A Flat Stomach by avoiding these foods and by using these lean body workouts. Are your abs not showing because of fat build up? You are right to be concerned about belly fat because your health is at risk. Here is the solution. “The Truth about Six Pack Abs” is probably the best known, Get a Flat Stomach solution in the world, with over 439,000 readers in 163 countries to date.
flat stomach, how to get a six pack
wordpress blog, money blog, WordPress Plugin
http://imstitute.com/go.php?offer=autox34&pid=4
There’s a Better, Faster and Easier Way to Create a Profitable Membership Site. An easy-to-use WordPress plugin that allows you to turn any blog into a powerful membership site in just minutes from now.
my money blog, Membership Site
wordpress blog, my money blog, Membership Site
http://imstitute.com/go.php?offer=autox34&pid=4
There’s a Better, Faster and Easier Way to Create a Profitable Membership Site. An easy-to-use WordPress plugin that allows you to turn any blog into a powerful membership site in just minutes from now.
money blog, WordPress Plugin