tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post4351907070306969776..comments2024-03-26T00:25:34.026-04:00Comments on Not Running a Hospital: How not to regulate ratesPaul Levyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17065446378970179507noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-6840827302637995882010-03-17T09:29:25.148-04:002010-03-17T09:29:25.148-04:00More on this topic from Michael Widmer, President ...More on this topic from Michael Widmer, President of the Mass Taxpayers Association: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2010/03/17/caps_hurt_health_system/?comments=all#readerCommAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-66520803629969971382010-03-16T14:48:01.073-04:002010-03-16T14:48:01.073-04:00Sigh. Most people know that health insurance is e...Sigh. Most people know that health insurance is expensive and getting more so because health CARE is expensive and growing faster than our economy and our ability to pay for it. The most important drivers of healthcare cost growth are rising prices charged by hospitals, doctors, labs, imaging centers, drug companies and device manufacturers and increased utilization driven by a combination of the proliferation of new technology and, to a lesser extent, the aging of the population.<br /><br />Since I don’t have to deal with regulators in MA or anywhere else, I can be direct. They don’t have the courage to take on the powerful provider interests while insurers are an easy target that lots of people love to hate. One would think that regulators should want to ensure that insurers remain sufficiently solvent so that they can pay medical claims on a timely basis as they are incurred. As Paul noted, the MA health insurance market is dominated by non-profits. They are hardly profiteering. If regulators are interested in bending the medical cost growth curve, I recommend disclosure of provider contract reimbursement rates and medical outcomes to the extent that they are measurable.Barry Carolnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-66505962950154161322010-03-16T14:40:29.216-04:002010-03-16T14:40:29.216-04:00Until the consumer/patient is responsible for more...Until the consumer/patient is responsible for more of their medical bill, any case base reimbursement system is doomed to failure. Capitation is based on the premise that providers can positively impact their patient's health. An obese society that eats, drinks and smokes too much has no financial penalty for their poor health decisions. Universally insuring the uninsured, who are typically either very sick or very healthy, does nothing to change this debate. People don't like to pay for their car maintanence but they know the alternative will be more costly repairs. Until patients are financially burdened to look at their bodies in the same way America will continue to require more of it's GDP be spent on healthcare. Getting the government out of the health insurance business and moving towards higher deductible/ catastrophic health insurance policies would bend the healthcare cost curve and reward healthy decisions. Otherwise, we all are forced to pay for others lack of self discipline which means either hospitals, providers or insurers wind up with the short end of the stick when governments cannot keep up with healthcare inflation.Larry MDnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32053362.post-73559927250333312102010-03-16T14:06:43.246-04:002010-03-16T14:06:43.246-04:00There is a clear problem with abusive rate increas...There is a clear problem with abusive rate increases for individual policies and those with small groups were insurers wish to eliminate individuals that they deem to be to big a risk. An example was described by the President yesterday. This needs to be addressed and controlled.<br /><br />In your post you do not describe the criteria that the State will use to evaluate changes in rates. These may, or may not, be all together proper. The reader, and I assume you, don't know how the insurance commission will evaluate rate changes. Until I know the procedures they will use, I am not willing to condemn the state's action.Bill Reenstrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15097431836248969165noreply@blogger.com