Sirotablog

By David Sirota

Washington Examiner - 8/7/06 (Permalink)

Here’s an idea rarely discussed in our nation’s capital: Health insurance should not be a for-profit industry.

Think that’s a radical concept? If so, then the majority of Americans are radicals. According to a national Harris poll in 2003, a strong majority of American “would prefer health care services to be provided by non-profits or government.”

The public’s sentiment is understandable, given the facts. Take, for instance, a recent Reuters story on a major university study. “For-profit nursing homes and hospitals on average provide an inferior quality of care compared with their nonprofit peers,” the news service reported, adding that “Nonprofit hospitals are also better at keeping costs down.”

How about Businessweek’s June expose on the Veterans Administration? The magazine found that this nonprofit “nationwide health system that is run and financed by the federal government provides the best medical care in America.” It does so at the same time “VA has held its costs per patient steady over the past 10 years despite double-digit inflation in health care prices.”

Then there is Medicare. Harvard researchers have documented that America’s elderly, who are covered by the program, are 20 percent happier with their health care than other Americans who are in the private, for-profit system. And while roughly 15 cents of every dollar goes to “administrative” costs in the for-profit system, just 4 cents of every dollar goes to the same in Medicare.

So if Americans want the private profit motive removed from health care, and the data shows nonprofit health care delivers better, more cost-efficient care, then why do so few politicians in Washington talk about creating a government-sponsored, nonprofit universal health care system? Especially at a time when health care premiums are skyrocketing, more Americans are going uninsured, and voters consistently rank health care as a top concern, the question is critical.

Some claim the silence comes from voter opposition to the general concept of government health care. That assertion is not supported by facts. A 2003 ABC News poll found roughly two-thirds of Americans support a “universal health insurance program, in which everyone is covered under a program like Medicare that’s run by the government and financed by taxpayers.” Similarly, a 2005 poll by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center found a strong majority support “government guaranteeing health insurance for all citizens, even if it means raising taxes.” That included about half of core GOP voters.

No, as with everything in Washington, the real answer to the question is found by following the money. Politicians don’t talk about creating a not-for-profit health care system because they operate in a pay-to-play culture — one that rewards their silence.

Since 2000, the health industry has donated more than $370 million to the lawmakers of both political parties. The No. 1 recipient of that largesse last year was Republican Sen. Rick Santorum — the third-ranking Republican in the U.S. Senate who has ardently opposed a single-payer health care system. No. 2 was Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton — who, just 12 years removed from her attempt to reform health care, is now giving speeches apologizing for her previous efforts. Also bathed in health industry cash has been Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. He has been a key opponent of health care reform — not surprising, considering he is also one of the heirs of HCA, the largest for-profit hospital chain in America.

These campaign contributions and conflicts of interest guarantee that false debates substitute for a discussion of serious health care reform that might end health industry price gouging.

And make no mistake — a casual look at the headlines from research firm Weiss Ratings shows gouging is exactly what’s happening: “HMOs’ Profits Climb 81 Percent to $5.5 Billion in 2002”; “HMOs Earn $10.2 Billion in 2003, Nearly Doubling Profits”; “Nation’s HMO Profits Increase 10.7 Percent in 2004”; “HMO Profits Jump 21 Percent in First Quarter 2005.” You can bet those profits aren’t being plowed into better care — they are being put into the pockets of executives like UnitedHealth’s CEO William Maguire, who over the last few years alone has amassed $1.5 billion in executive compensation.

Thankfully, a diverse coalition including health care professionals and courageous politicians are fighting back. That includes 14,000 doctors who are now members of Physicians for a National Health Care Program. It also includes Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., who just published a bold new book showing how the current for-profit system is destroying America’s economy. He says it is time “we get [the government] more involved in cleaning up the health care mess.”

These and other leaders are breaking the silence and addressing the taboo subject of making health care off-limits to profiteers. And the louder their voices get, the closer this country will be to getting the not-for-profit health care system its citizens want and deserve.