Comments on: MITT, WIT, AND REAL-WORLD CHOICES http://www.healthcarebs.com/2007/12/18/mitt-wit-and-real-world-choices/ Cleaning the Augean Stables of the Health Care Debate Thu, 08 Jan 2009 23:29:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.3 By: R. Garth Kirkwood MD http://www.healthcarebs.com/2007/12/18/mitt-wit-and-real-world-choices/#comment-12758 R. Garth Kirkwood MD Tue, 18 Dec 2007 21:32:07 +0000 http://www.healthcarebs.com/2007/12/18/mitt-wit-and-real-world-choices/#comment-12758 Governor Romney's Massachusetts health plan was destined to failure from the start, because the legislation was crafted by politicians in conjunction with health insurance executives and other health care business people. They treat health care as a business, which means their main interest is with their own ongoing profit margins and not with actual health care, i.e., sound, ongoing doctor---patient relationships. To satisfy their main interest, they continue with the roadblocks to actual health care: increasing premiums, deductibles, copays, coinsurance, lessening of services covered, and other ploys to enhance their bottom line, such as reduction of payment to providers. Price control, quality, and equal access for everyone can all be achieved through a properly functioning single payer coupled with a change of attitude in America. However, the courage of the politicians to actually attempt this has been sadly lacking. I wonder why? "Government-run health care" is a scare phrase, the same as the words, "socialized medicine." Health care is run by the doctor---patient relationship. R. Garth Kirkwood MD Governor Romney’s Massachusetts health plan was destined to failure from the start, because the legislation was crafted by politicians in conjunction with health insurance executives and other health care business people. They treat health care as a business, which means their main interest is with their own ongoing profit margins and not with actual health care, i.e., sound, ongoing doctor—patient relationships. To satisfy their main interest, they continue with the roadblocks to actual health care: increasing premiums, deductibles, copays, coinsurance, lessening of services covered, and other ploys to enhance their bottom line, such as reduction of payment to providers.

Price control, quality, and equal access for everyone can all be achieved through a properly functioning single payer coupled with a change of attitude in America. However, the courage of the politicians to actually attempt this has been sadly lacking. I wonder why?

“Government-run health care” is a scare phrase, the same as the words, “socialized medicine.” Health care is run by the doctor—patient relationship.

R. Garth Kirkwood MD

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