Issue Position: Medical Insurance Reform

Issue Position

"...we must ALL take some type of responsibility for our health care costs. We must ALL understand that Washington is not the solution, Washington has been the problem. As well, we must understand that there is NO such thing as FREE!! We can get rid of HUNDREDS of BILLIONS of dollars in waste and debt if we enact some of these and other "Common Sense" "Free Enterprise" solutions."
Jackie Miller

Our Doctors-

Let us first begin by discussing one of the most intimate relationships we have, that between patient and doctor. Our doctors have been dissed by many in Congress in favor of the big trial lawyer lobbies for years and with current possible legislation, not too mention the fringe elite media. Here's some truth. Doctors are not a bunch of rich men and women playing golf every Wednesday. They are dedicated men and women whom I have been personally blessed throughout the years to have had that genuinely cared and do care about my health and all of their patients. Our doctors are paying exorbitant amounts for "medical malpractice insurance." They need ever increasing amounts of staff just to get through the mounds of paperwork involved in endless red tape with government bureaucracy, big health insurance companies, not too mention hiring and training of employees needed to understand the whole mess. Then there is the wasted time of employees simply attempting to find a hospital or other testing facility that will take whatever form of insurance we may have. Following we will present many do-able and viable solutions, as a Washington D. C. Socialized type of health care is just not the answer. Who of us in our right mind wants a government run health care system that offers the compassion of the IRS, the efficiency of the post office and the effectiveness of Katrina? So let's look at a "Balanced and effective approach" which will be far more cost friendly to "We the People."
It should be "Medical Insurance" NOT "Health Insurance."

I'm not quite sure how we have all been brainwashed into this "health insurance" language. It's laughable to think we can "insure" our health when you actually dissect it. We used to refer to health insurance as "medical insurance," which was needed and suggested to protect a person or families assets against catastrophic illness, in other words neutralize financial risk. As cruel to some as this may sound, there is nothing in our Constitution that guarantees us any form of "Government/Washington" health insurance. To be fair I could share my own nightmare story about even attempting to get a 'high deductable-catastrophic' medical insurance plan. I'll be upfront I don't like the big insurance agencies; however they are not entirely to blame for the mess our health industry currently faces. There is plenty of finger pointing to be sure up to and including ourselves. Now let's look at some ways "We the People" can fix the mess Washington itself has helped to create.

1. Big Pharmaceutical- While any fair minded "free enterprise" person would agree that the pharmaceutical companies should recuperate their research and development cost and indeed enjoy a profit, we must insist that the price of drugs come down. It is ridiculous what many of us are paying. The "big pharma" lobby is huge though. We still have not had a logical answer as to why the same drugs sold to Canada cost less there than here. Maybe if the "big Pharma" companies would stop ruining Elvis Presley songs and turning us all into a bunch of hypochondriacs via the BILLIONS of dollars spent on advertising and sales people selling to doctors they would be able to come down on the pricing of drugs we all really do need. Many of us fall between the cracks of any drug assistance from some of these companies, as if you are middle class (working poor) you simply will not qualify. Let us also remember that our tax dollars go to fund some of the research involved. (Lobbyists again!) To be fair however, we must have "frivolous law suit reform." As these "class action" types of lawsuits against some of the pharmas are actually paid for by ALL of us in the form of higher prices. (See more under our "we the people" legislation.) Maybe the suits should be more aimed at the FDA?
2. A More Patient Centered-"Us and our Doctor" Approach- a.) Get rid of the "third-party" system. We should have a direct buyer-seller approach. This type of system would also reduce fraud, corruption, and patient-doctor anxiety in regard to worrying more about the insurance company than our health. This system would also reduce some of the costs for our doctors. b.) Let's remember that our doctors are also business persons! There are doctors who have developed there own "entrepreneurial" ideas such as; a doctor that takes no insurance and has a "menu" which lists the cost of any services and is very competitive! This doctor has one nurse and one receptionist, thereby greatly cutting down overhead. He even makes house-calls! Speaking of house-calls there are a group of doctors that only go to homes, no insurance involved and cost effective for both patient and physician. There is a doctor in New York who actually worked out his own basic health care insurance for a nominal yearly fee that gave folks unlimited basic health needs visits. (However, big government stepped in and said he could no longer do this!) He and his patients were happy! GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO GET OUT OF OUR DOCTOR'S OFFICES!! c.) Medical Malpractice Reform- This is a huge expense to our doctors, many of which (depending on their specialty) can spend as much as $100,000 and up per year! Most of the time doctors who are sued win their cases, however, at great expense. (See more under "we the people" legislation-frivolous law suit reform.) Not only do our doctors have to pass on this cost to all of us, this is beginning to drive away many doctors in specialties such as OB/GYN's.
3. More "Choice"- Imagine if you were able to see an actual "menu" for services for everything from a doctor visit to drugs, tests, and hospitalization? This should be something that we should insist on. We could then make more informed decisions. Also the following must happen: a.) We need to allow "medical insurance" to be sold across state lines thus creating a real "free enterprise" system, this would bring on competiveness and go a long way in reduction of cost. Portability is also a must, we should not fear losing our insurance if we change jobs or re-locate. b.) We should be offered "catastrophic medical insurance" with choices that would include higher deductibles thus more affordable policies and no denial of pre-existing conditions! A lower cost higher deductible plan along with a policy from a company such as AFLAC would put many an American at ease in regard to potential "medical bankruptcy." c.) Personal Health savings Accounts. When you alone are responsible for paying more questions are asked. Many doctors when made aware that you are paying directly out of pocket will offer their services at a reduced rate. (However, sadly many do not.) That being said if you have a doctor and by the way a dentist, testing facility, pharmacist that won't cut you a break simply go else where and we will see the "free enterprise" system really begin to work!
4. Everybody Pays Something- When anything is "free" it really has no "moral value." I will reiterate that if we all saw an actual "menu" of medical services it might give us some pause. Let's get one thing straight though, IT IS NOT FREE!! Free health care is not "government money" it is your neighbor's, co-workers, mom & pop shops' etc. That being said even if you are on Medicaid you should pay something, maybe a $5 co-pay. That way it has value. "We the People" should demand this! It is inexcusable that tax paying hard working Americans are asked to shoulder the entire burden, especially when many think nothing of going to an expensive "emergency room" for basic health care needs. Speaking of emergency rooms. When uninsured, (both legal & illegal) and Medicaid patients go to an ER they should also be invested somehow, I think a $25 co-pay UPFRONT is more than fair to ask, as many of the costs are never paid and passed on to the consumer. No wonder one aspirin is five dollars!
5. Educating Our Young People in Medical Insurance- While I certainly do not believe what is in many of the current "health bills" forcing our young people to buy insurance or be fined, they must be educated regarding the need for them to have a good medical insurance plan. From the time I first entered the workforce at 14 ½ years old, my father pounded it into my head to take the medical insurance plans any employer would ever offer me. Thank God I listened, as once at the age of (25) and again at (30) having no medical insurance would have been a disaster! Both times were issues that were completely out of the norm. This happens! None of us has a crystal ball. Parents must do a better job of getting our young people to understand that their lifestyles can and will change dramatically such as bankruptcy at an early age, thus possibly affecting potential employment. Our education system could help by inviting medical insurance spokespersons to explain that the younger and healthier you are the cheaper the policy is. Waiting until something happens or ending up with what is considered a "pre-existing condition" will cost far more. Another thing my dad taught me from a very early age is to "respect my elders" that I would someday be an elder myself. None of us should have to shoulder the cost of irresponsibility! No matter how invincible one may perceive themselves. If more of our young people will enter the "medical insurance" pool, prices will come down for all of us.
6. Medicare/Medicaid Fraud Reform/Opting Out Of Medicare. This one is HUGE! This is the WOOLY MAMMOTH in the room no one wants to deal with and we MUST "eat a piece of it at a time." A real personal pet peeve of mine! Along with the following solutions somewhere down the line the end result should be to gradually end this. Please understand that we will NOT be able to do this with the "snap of our fingers." We have made "Promises" to our elderly and we need to keep them. Our current "unfunded liabilities" for these "entitlement programs" stands at a whopping $73 Trillion. We are crushing our children's futures! So what to do? a.) Fraud Reform- This MUST stop! There are millions out there that have no business on Medicaid. Many whom as we've discussed could have had their own form of insurance and chose not to take it. For instance several years ago I worked at a local restaurant as a food server while our store front was being developed. Many of the younger servers chose not to take employee health insurance and went on to the rolls of TENN CARE. They had no shame about it and preferred to spend that money which would have come out of their checks at the local bar and on illegal drugs. This is how "big government bureaucracies work! A call was made to report them by a fellow employee, but nothing ever happened, which brings us to: b.) Fraud Report Tip Lines. Currently there are fraud tip lines, but they obviously need to work more efficiently. These "tip lines" should also offer a reward thereby giving more incentive to report these blatant abuses. c.)There should be "caps" placed on how many visits are allowed in a reasonable time frame of course without compromising good overall health. Going to a doctor for the common cold has to stop. A special done about a year ago by John Stossel showed seniors in Florida who had no shame in admitting that they consider it an event to go to their doctor, though nothing is wrong! Many also admitted, when questioned regarding how those of us younger pay for those unnecessary visits that they simply did not care! We the taxpayer should be outraged. As I've said I certainly respect our seniors but, let's be fair. d.) There is also HUGE drug and medical fraud with both of these. While most doctors operate with the utmost of honor and integrity there are a few bad apples like any profession. Sadly there are some doctors who are members of "Insurance Fraud Rings" please take my word for it this happens all of the time, bunches in our big cities, such as Los Angeles and Las Vegas where of course I lived. Too detailed to go into. Here again a "reward system" may help with this. e.) As for drugs it is an OUTRAGE that we are over-medicating our seniors! Just one example out of millions is a friend of my husband's that takes (17) different prescriptions a day! No wonder he feels awful! Yet we are footing the bill for this. The mentality of "take a pill for whatever ails you" needs to stop. We need to have an overall approach to health for our seniors like lifestyle changes and more homeopathic instead of having them pop a pill for any little thing. To me we should all be ashamed that this is going virtually un-checked and un-noticed. f.) Opting Out of Medicare- Let our seniors keep their Social Security benefits even if they reject Medicare. This could be a huge cost saver for our Country. As of the time of this writing this is being looked at by the Supreme Court. Let's pray! The way current rules are set up, if you are happy and can afford to pay your own "medical insurance" and do not want "Medicare Part A" you must surrender you Social Security benefits. g.) In Home Hospital Recovery and In Home Hospice Care. This would not only be a more cost effective approach, but a safer, more comfortable environment for our seniors to recover from a serious illness. The fact is that the more time spent recovering in a hospital setting the more likely infection will occur, not too mention it is not the most comfortable place to recuperate. (On a side note though; rationing does occur! Sadly I have experience with this with my dad. So letting a patient out too early must be equally kept in check.) In home hospice also gives our seniors a chance to be in the most comfortable setting they know, their own home.
7. 21st. Century technology- a.) Doctors who are or become "paperless" should have electronic funds transferred every evening so they no longer lose money while waiting to be paid, (that should include Medicare,) which also could help in the fight against fraud. b.) Our health is our property! We should have our own individual health records, everything involving our health available to us ANYTIME! Our records would be encrypted and our personal privacy would be protected by Federal law making it a mandatory felony with a mandatory sentence for anyone misusing our information. We should not have to jump through hoops and pay extra to know our own health issues. This would also enable us to be more knowledgeable in participating in our own health and make sure there are no mistakes in our records. c.) Electronic information between doctors and hospitals. Again safety and security is a must, but being able to get needed and necessary information to other doctors, hospitals and test facilities with the click of a mouse is not only cost effective but can ultimately save lives. d.) Electronic Prescriptions. This would also help in the fight against fraud. One provision however, should be that your physician give you a printout of exactly what has been prescribed and how many refills if any so that you are better able to keep tabs on your own medication. (I am still a believer in some paper back-up.) If necessary we should also be able to fill needed medications if out of town longer than expected. As an extra precaution pharmacies should make absolutely sure you are who you say you are. e.) Insurance or out of pocket allow (3) prescriptions. With the exception of "controlled substances" such as sleeping medications, we should be allowed, if we choose, to fill (3) prescriptions at the same time of our necessary meds. The reason behind this is simple. We just never know what can happen in life such as a natural disaster. This is especially important for something such as breathing inhalers.
8. No Federal Funding for Abortion. Simply put, many American taxpaying citizens have strong feelings about this issue. Although abortion is legal it should NOT be the taxpayer's burden either directly or indirectly to pay for a procedure that is highly offensive to many of us. If a woman chooses this option she and the father should bear the cost burden. This may seem harsh but, with all of the safe and effective means of birth control these days there is no good reason for an un-wanted pregnancy. Along those lines there should also no longer be any federal taxpayer funding directly or indirectly for "Planned Parenthood." Let the "private sector" donate if they wish. When elected I believe that we MUST revisit the disgusting and brutal act of partial birth abortion. The "exception for health" clause is a GIANT LOOPHOLE that in my opinion opened the door for this heinous act to continue.

In closing, we must ALL take some type of responsibility for our health care costs. We must ALL understand that Washington is not the solution, Washington has been the problem. As well, we must understand that there is NO such thing as FREE!! We can get rid of HUNDREDS of BILLIONS of dollars in waste and debt if we enact some of these and other "Common Sense" "Free Enterprise" solutions.

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