Repeal or defunding of healthcare reform won't be enough because the law has already wrought "profound" and "destructive" changes in the healthcare system, according to a guest opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal.
Lloyd M. Krieger, MD, a Beverly Hills, Calif., plastic surgeon, wrote reform is the cause of higher health insurance premiums and "a wave of frantic consolidation in the health industry."
Health insurers have been jacking up their rates because reform requires them to accept all patients regardless of pre-existing conditions, making it hard for companies to make money under current premiums and payment structures.
A stampede to consolidate
Physicians and hospitals have decided "they cannot survive unless they achieve massive size — and fast," Dr. Krieger wrote. Six years ago, physicians owned more than two-thirds of practices, but next year nearly two-thirds of physicians will be salaried employees of hospitals and other larger institutions.
While consolidation can create some efficiencies, it also means "government bureaucrats will be able to impose controls with much greater ease," Dr. Krieger wrote. Under tighter government regulation, "pathways to expensive specialist care such as advanced radiology and surgery will decline," the surgeon added. "Cutting-edge devices and medicines will come into the system much more slowly and be used much less frequently."
Defunding enforcement activities will not be enough because "limits on treatment choices are already becoming hardwired into the system," Dr. Krieger stated. "Lawmakers must take concrete steps to stop and reverse this."
What Congress should do
Providers who have not consolidated need tax and other economic shields and Congress should unwind new government rules on data compilation, reporting and compliance requirements, and information technology. These rules "increase overhead to the point that only massive and easily regulated provider organizations can survive," Dr. Krieger wrote.
In addition to repealing the individual mandate to buy health insurance, Congress should make sure consumers are able to choose from a variety of coverage options, purchase policies across state lines, and get tax breaks for purchasing medical care not covered by their insurance, such as plastic surgery.
Read the Wall Street Journal opinion piece on healthcare reform.
Read more coverage on efforts to roll back healthcare reform:
- House Panel Demands Documents on Health Reform Planning
- Republicans Plan to Withhold Healthcare Reform Funding
- Senate GOP Bill to Cut Medicare, Medicaid Gets Democratic Supporter
Lloyd M. Krieger, MD, a Beverly Hills, Calif., plastic surgeon, wrote reform is the cause of higher health insurance premiums and "a wave of frantic consolidation in the health industry."
Health insurers have been jacking up their rates because reform requires them to accept all patients regardless of pre-existing conditions, making it hard for companies to make money under current premiums and payment structures.
A stampede to consolidate
Physicians and hospitals have decided "they cannot survive unless they achieve massive size — and fast," Dr. Krieger wrote. Six years ago, physicians owned more than two-thirds of practices, but next year nearly two-thirds of physicians will be salaried employees of hospitals and other larger institutions.
While consolidation can create some efficiencies, it also means "government bureaucrats will be able to impose controls with much greater ease," Dr. Krieger wrote. Under tighter government regulation, "pathways to expensive specialist care such as advanced radiology and surgery will decline," the surgeon added. "Cutting-edge devices and medicines will come into the system much more slowly and be used much less frequently."
Defunding enforcement activities will not be enough because "limits on treatment choices are already becoming hardwired into the system," Dr. Krieger stated. "Lawmakers must take concrete steps to stop and reverse this."
What Congress should do
Providers who have not consolidated need tax and other economic shields and Congress should unwind new government rules on data compilation, reporting and compliance requirements, and information technology. These rules "increase overhead to the point that only massive and easily regulated provider organizations can survive," Dr. Krieger wrote.
In addition to repealing the individual mandate to buy health insurance, Congress should make sure consumers are able to choose from a variety of coverage options, purchase policies across state lines, and get tax breaks for purchasing medical care not covered by their insurance, such as plastic surgery.
Read the Wall Street Journal opinion piece on healthcare reform.
Read more coverage on efforts to roll back healthcare reform:
- House Panel Demands Documents on Health Reform Planning
- Republicans Plan to Withhold Healthcare Reform Funding
- Senate GOP Bill to Cut Medicare, Medicaid Gets Democratic Supporter