greg henry md “medicare… should have been called the ‘savior of internal medicine act.’”...
TRANSCRIPT
Greg Henry MD
“Medicare… should have been called the ‘Savior of Internal Medicine Act.’”
Emergency Physician Monthly October ‘09
History (continued)
The birth of the Blues 1965: Medicare and
Medicaid 1993: Clinton Health
Plan Death of not-for-profit
insurance
Anthem /WellPoint(formerly Blue Cross)
CEO Larry Glasscock in Indianapolis, just retired
Bonus in 2003 - $42.5 Million
Indianapolis Star 4/7/04
What Do We Get For Our Money?
The most expensive health care in the world
The best health care in the world?
WHO Global Health Rankings
☤ At the top: France is #1
☤ US ranks 37th, between Costa Rica and Slovenia
Elderly as Percent of Total Population
Tobacco Smokers
OECD, 2004 (2002 Data, U.K is 2001)
MRI Units per Million People
OECD, 2004 (2002 Data, U.S., Canada, and Germany are 2001)
Why spend so much AND get so little?
Reason # 1: Our profit-driven insurance system
AND As long as millions
are left out, everyone will suffer
Myths
Our “system” is fine, just needs band-aids
The safety net We can’t afford to cover
everyone The best health care system in the
world
International Timeline of Universal Healthcare
Germany 1883Switzerland 1911
New Zealand 1938France 1945United Kingdom 1946Sweden 1947USA 1947*Japan 1961Canada 1966Australia 1974Italy 1978Spain 1986Taiwan 1995
*President Truman proposed but failed to pass National Health Insurance
Myth Versus Reality
Every wealthy democracy has A National Program of Health Care
For All
Socialized Medicine versus Single Payer
The Medical-Industrial Complex
“Remember that what the rest of us call health care costs, they call income.”
- Paul Krugman, Nobel Laureate New York Times 5/10/09
Physician Support – NHI
1Ann Int Med, Carroll, Nov 18, 20032Ann Int Med, Carroll, Apr 1, 20083NEJM, Keyhani, Sept 14, 2009
☤2003: 49% favor establish NHI1
☤2008: 59% now in favor2
☤2009: 58% expand Medicare3
Physician Support for NHI by Specialty
Ackermann R T, Carroll A E Ann Intern Med 2003;139:795-801
©2003 by American College of Physicians
“It is time for our nation to extend coverage to everyone.”-Institute of Medicine, 2004
Why Health Care for All -
Young and Old, Rich and Poor?
Insurance Premiums • Workers’ Earnings • Inflation
1999-2008
Kaiser/HRET Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Benefits, 2000-2008. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index
1Hewitt Associates The Road Ahead: 2009
Our Broken System:
☁ 1 in 5 employers to drop health benefits in next 3-5 years
