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A Primer on Problems with Congress' Health Reform Bills and a Preview of Possibilities with Patient-Centered Reform

February 18, 2010
Here is a refresher that may be useful to those attending the Blair House summit to answer those who still insist the Democratic leadership's bills must be passed so they can “do something” on health reform. The American people know we need reform, but they simply do not want this legislation, as evidenced in the latest Rasmussen poll showing that 61 percent of those polled saying Congress should start all over on health reform.

Competition in the Health Care Marketplace

July 16, 2009
There are many problems in our health sector that require careful and deliberative change, including the issue you are exploring today involving the lack of competition in many parts of the health sector. I would argue that many of the problems the country is facing involving cost, quality, and access to health care could be addressed by encouraging more competition and empowering consumers to have greater control over decisions involving their care and coverage. In my testimony, I will highlight some of the progress that is being made through innovations in care delivery, in creative benefit offerings, and even in lowering the cost of treatments to show that the competitive market can respond to the demands of consumers for better quality care at more affordable prices.

Massachusetts’ Health Reform Plan: Miracle or Muddle?

June 26, 2009
Congress is writing health reform legislation that contains many of the changes implemented by Massachusetts when it passed its reform law in 2006, but the state’s experience so far shows that Washington should proceed with great caution.  Implementation of the Bay State’s reform plan continues to pose many challenges. The Galen Institute has produced a major new paper, “Massachusetts’ Health Reform Plan: Miracle or Muddle” that details many of these challenges, including rising costs, shortages of doctors, increased use of hospital emergency rooms, and burdensome mandates on employers and individuals.  More Massachusetts residents are insured, but three out of five are receiving taxpayer-subsidized policies. Before copying this experiment nationwide, lawmakers should heed the problems facing this laboratory of democracy. 

Providing Coverage For All Through Private Health Insurance

May 18, 2009
The United States is unique in the developed world in that the majority of Americans have private health insurance that they receive through the workplace. This is not the result of a deliberate decision but rather policy that evolved as the unintended consequence of a World War II ruling. Factory owners were competing to lure and keep good workers and wanted to offer health insurance as a benefit, but they needed the government’s assurance that this wouldn’t violate wartime wage and price controls.

Recommendation for Coordinated Care Management for Medicare/Medicaid Beneficiaries

May 7, 2009
This proposal outlines a new Medicaid Advantage program that would integrate acute and long-term care benefits for dual-eligible beneficiaries into a single program, managed by the states, to provide a medical home and better coordinated care for beneficiaries.

Canadian Care: So Many Lessons, So Little Time

May 6, 2009
Brian Lee Crowley testified before Pennsylvania legislators, on behalf of AIMS and the Galen Institute, to describe the minefield ahead in further politicizing health care. Crowley uses a mix of in-depth research and personal experience to show the faults within Canadian health care and the lessons Americans can draw from its experience. As politicians are drawn into ever more responsibility for health care decisions and outcomes, he says, it creates a dynamic in which the politicians must demand ever more control over the system.

Consensus Group Statement: Would the Health Reform Prescriptions Offered by President Obama and Congressional Leaders Help Patients?

April 1, 2009
We are gravely concerned that several of the proposals offered by the President and the Congressional leadership would make matters worse, not better. There are many problems that need to be addressed in the health sector, and the signatories to this statement have written extensively about our ideas for reform.   Because the reform agenda is moving rapidly through Congress, we believe the American public should be aware of the likely impact of the policies described in this statement which are under active consideration by elected leaders.  We believe that the proposals put forth by the Administration and Congressional leaders would harm, not help, patients and would not fulfill the goals and promises made to the American people.

Lessons From Abroad for Health Reform in the U.S.

March 9, 2009
"So many lessons, so little time." That was how Brian Lee Crowley of Canada led off his remarks at our major conference, "Lessons from abroad for health reform in the U.S." on Monday, co-sponsored by the Galen Institute and the International Policy Network in London.

Addressing Underinsurance in National Health Reform

February 23, 2009
There is little debate about the need to make sure that all Americans have the security of insurance that protects them from medical bills they can’t afford and that provides them access to the care they need. But no part of the health sector, and no one goal, can be considered in isolation from the impact it will have on other goals and aspects of health care and coverage. That is particularly true when considering the issue of the underinsured and of requiring more generous, more comprehensive coverage.  Solving this problem must be integrated with other considerations, especially the risks of driving up costs and causing other adverse consequences.

A Profile of the Health Sector in the United States

January 30, 2009
The health care sector in the United States is unique among developed countries,and it is necessarily diverse to respond to the very different needs and demands of a country with 300 million people. It is a mix of public and private sector programs. But the health sector in the United States is often criticized, both at home and abroad, for the high number of people without insurance because we do not have a compulsory national system, as all other developed countries do.
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