National Health-Care Reform

This paper lays out the reasons America needs health care reform, identifies key health care interest groups, summarizes the major components of proposed reform plans, and identifies the missing components of those plans. Supporting the case for reform is a perfect storm of demographics, health care cost growth, national economic woes, ineffective government, poor health care outcomes, and presidential campaign promises. Standing against reform are influential health care interest groups, who have impeded successful reform in the past. Because of their political influence, collaboration with health care interest groups is necessary for effective reform. Several viable reform plans are available to guide reform efforts. Common components of these health care reform plans include establishing a federal health care board providing universal coverage for all Americans standardizing coverage benefits working to increase the value of care provided making substantial investments in enabling infrastructure and giving a greater share of health care responsibilities to the government. Reform also must address elements that are missing from these plans, including performance measures, controls for technology insertion, influencing lifestyle choices, reforming medical education, overcoming political inertia, and dealing with the interdependence of the health care industry and the nations economic well-being.