The Mayo voice is a new and refreshing one that will resonate well with those of us in the middle who think that the single payer vs. marketplace debate should be put to rest.

Thanks to the Mayo fresh voice and vision.

Kathleen O’Connor
CodeBlueNow!

I am watching a wonderful speech by Dr Denis Cortese, Mayo Clinic, President & CEO on C-span tonight.
He speaks with truth and a voice of intelligence.
I think he might be one to watch for the answ…

Let me also point out that many of the really difficult problems Dr.Cortese wants to solve (reward for value, etc.) can actually be better handled under a single payer system. In any case they are really hard, so why not go after the low hanging friut which is how health insurance is paid.
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Let’s forget the immorality of the uninsured that lets poor people die. Forget the burden on businesses that make them less competitive. Just consider health care financing as a business decision. Develop statistics for measuring how we are doing. Look at the competitors (other countries). Look at their cost. If you are honest, you will become an advocate of a single payer system. Here are some facts. They can be checked at http://www.pnhp.org.

If you look at the 13 wealthiest countries and rank them according to the 16 basic public health statistics, the US ranks 12th or 13th in each one. Yet, yet we spend 2.5 TIMES as much per person as the average of these countries. Other countries get much better health care at much lower cost. (As a sanity check, WHO ranked the US 37th in the world in healthcare, just above Slovenia, but below Costa Rica.) All of these other 12 countries use some form of single payer system. Of course, they have some problems, but most of these are because they are not spending enough. We would not have those problems. In spite of all these so-called problems, they get better care. Also Medicare is a single payer system, and it is one of the most popular programs in the history of our country. The plan I like simply gives Medicare (without limitations, co-pays or deductions and with complete perscription coverage) to everyone. We could do this without spending any more than we are now.

The reason for this is that we waste at least $200 Billion a year on excess paperwork by physicians and at least $100 Billion a year on high overhead (15% vs. 1.3% for Canadians) of private insurance. Look here is a simplified example of what we are doing.

Suppose you have 100 dollars to give to 10 people. You could give $10 to each person. Alternatively, you could develop criteria that determine who is deserving, and then investigate each person. You might find that according to your criteria, only 5 people deserve the money. You spent, however $75, on your investigations, so now you can only give $5 to the 5 deserving ones. We spend much too much money denying people health care.

The basic problem is that the rules are made by private insurance companies whose only goal is to make money, not efficiency or good health care. If they can save a buck by having a physician fill out a 40 page form, they will do so.

What about choice? I am 69 years old and retired. During my career I had 5 HMO’s and 5 indemnity health plans. I have much more freedom of choice under Medicare than I had under any of the private insurance plans. I have no more referrals, no more in plan - out of plan nonsense. As for choice of insurance plan, why would anyone want choice if everyone had a plan that covered everything? In any case, you could still have private insurance for those who can afford it as most European countries still do.

Many people’s main opposition to a single payer system is that it is pie-in–the-sky; we will never get it through. Maybe so. That’s what they said about Social Security and Medicare. One thing is for sure. We will never get a rational health care system if we do not try.