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AFCM Reports: President Proposes MSA Expansion
Excerpts from President Bush's Health Care Speech
February 11, 2002
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
"The Medical College of Wisconsin represents the future of health
care
here and throughout our country. It's a fitting place to address the
great
opportunities and challenges that the future will bring our country.
Our health care system is in need of important reform, and on the
verge of
amazing discovery. We must seize the moment for the benefit of all
Americans."
[Remarks thanking several politicians, comments on war against
Islamic
terrorists, removed]
"There are a lot of challenges we face. We fight a recession. I'm
optimistic
we'll recover. But one of the big challenges is our health care, and
I like
to put it this way.
We face a huge challenge of making sure that we're still the world's
greatest health care system. That's our challenge: How do we
maintain our
edge? How do we make sure the American people get the best health
care in
the world?
And it starts by making sure that we attract the best and brightest
of the
medical profession. And that can start with the president saying,
'Thank
you' for dedicating your lives to such a great calling. American
appreciates
the fact that you've chosen a profession that is so profound and so
important. It is a model of service and excellence.''
And the achievements of our medical professionals set the standards
for the
entire world. Life expectancy in America today is eight years longer
than it
was in 1950, and 29 years longer than it was in 1900. That's a lot
of
progress. And for millions, those extra years are more active and
more
healthy than anybody could have imagined.
We're making great progress against many diseases, such as breast
cancer and
colon cancer and childhood leukemia. The death rate from coronary
disease is
down 40 percent since 1980. Our country leads the world in Nobel
Prizes for
science and medicine and in the invention of new drugs and medical
devices.
I truly believe that this progress is one of America's greatest
contributions to mankind. It is a tribute to the outstanding efforts
of the
medical profession and to a system of private medicine that
encourages
innovation and rewards hard work.
Yet our doctors and patients know that our system is far from
perfect. Too
many patients feel trapped by the system, with decisions about their
health
dictated by HMOs or government bureaucracies. Too many doctors feel
buried
in paperwork. I've heard it said that some doctors feel they don't
practice
medicine, they practice insurance.
At the same time, health care costs are rising sharply and many
people worry
they won't be able to afford the treatments they need.
Some procedures are overused, often as defense measures to avoid
litigation.
And about 40 million Americans still have no health insurance at
all.
We must reform health care in America. We must build a modern,
innovative
health care system that gives patients more options and fewer
orders, and
strengthens the doctor-patient relationship.
The government has got to take an active role in reform. Yet it's
important
that government's role is not to centralize nor is government's role
to
control the delivery of medicine.
Other nations have tried this route, and it's lead to long lines for
treatment, low-quality care and lagging technologies. And for many
patients,
their experience with centralized government-controlled medicine
leaves them
somewhere else, often right here to America where they can get the
treatment
and care they need.
The role of government health reform is to fix a system where it's
failing
while preserving the quality and innovation of a private,
patient-centered
medical system. All reforms should be guided by some goals.
The first goal: All Americans should be able to choose a health care
plan
that meets their needs at affordable prices. When people have good
choices,
when people are given different options, health plans have to
compete for
business, which means higher quality and better coverage.
Most Americans get their health care coverage at work, yet higher
costs are
causing some employers to cut back on benefits, or insist that the
employee
pay more, especially if they want to choose their own doctor or to
avoid the
complications of managed care. Many families end up in a health plan
whose
monthly premium puts a strain on their budget. And when they require
care,
they find what they need really isn't fully covered.
So here's what I propose. I propose we give workers more choice. I
propose
we reform the system to make the system more individualized by
creating
personal health accounts. Instead of paying a large premium every
month for
services you may not use, I believe we ought to have an account that
allows
a person to pay a much smaller premium for major medical coverage,
and then
put the savings into a health account tax-free.
The money is your money. It's your money in the health account, not
the
government's money. And you can use it for whatever health care need
that
arises. If you don't use it, it's yours to keep. And for the more
affordable
premium, you also get catastrophic care; protection in case of
serious
illness.
The tendency for government is one size fits all. If part of reform
is to
restore the patient-doctor relation and to give patients more
choices, we
have to change the tax system to incur and allow for patients to
make
decisions that is in their best interest.
And I also propose to help workers get better and more affordable
choices in
health plans at work.
Now, some large companies, they're OK; you got some choice. But many
small
businesses are unable to afford health insurance. And so—and that's
because
there's not much purchasing power. A standalone small business does
not have
purchasing power in the marketplace; either they can't afford to
cover or
they have to allow their employees to settle on a high-premium,
high-dollar
single plan.
And so, what I propose is that we ought to allow employers to pool
together
through an industry association or perhaps a chamber of commerce, so
that
they can get the best deal for their workers, just as large
corporations are
allowed to do.
Too many workers get no coverage at all through their jobs. This is
especially true among minorities or part-time employees and seasonal
workers. For those with limited means, my budget will provide new
credits to
afford health coverage: up to $1,000 for an individual or $3,000 per
family.
And they won't have to wait for tax time to get these health
credits. We'll
make them immediately available for qualifying families, giving them
the
help they need when they need it.
And at the same time, we'll work with our nation's governors to
create
purchasing groups to negotiate with insurers for the people who use
these
health credits.
In other words, people who don't have insurance must be given
incentive to
purchase insurance, the states can help them pool in order to get
decent
coverage, but it's not a government program. In other words, we
trust the
people: The government incents individuals to make decisions in the
marketplace. If the goal is to increase quality care by encouraging
individual choice and a doctor-patient relationship, health credits
is one
way to help the uninsured do so."
This partial text is posted for educational purposes only.
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