This Op-Ed was published by the Des Moines Register on August 21.
I write this not as a Republican, nor as a Democrat – I’m politically agnostic. When it comes to addressing healthcare, a critical election issue, Iowa voters have the first crack at drilling down and asking presidential candidates for details on how costs will be meaningfully lowered, who will be covered, what will be covered, how it will be paid, and how higher-quality care will be delivered consistently to all populations.
The candidates we eventually elect must thoroughly analyze the details of their plans, including the possibility of unintended consequences that will invariably result. Acknowledging the pros and cons of the plan they support is both honest and crucial.
For presidential candidates to successfully make it out of Iowa and live to compete in future primaries and caucuses, Iowans must require each to articulate the specifics of their plan. Generic responses of supporting “Medicare for All” or “Single-Payer” does little to inform voters, other than allow candidates to merely checkoff one of many issues they support. In healthcare, the devil is definitely in the details.
During the Democratic debates this summer, many candidates singled out insurance and pharmaceutical companies as being responsible for the cost predicament we have across the nation. In fact, Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-Vt), pledged to reject any donations over $200 from political action committees, lobbyists and executives of insurance and drug companies. Sen. Sanders called on other Democratic candidates to do the same.
Per Sanders’ pledge, “Candidates who are not willing to take that pledge should explain to the American people why those corporate interests and their donations are a good investment for the healthcare industry.”
This pledge, although well-intentioned, does not go far enough. The narrative that insurance companies and pharmaceutical manufacturers are the lone villains is grossly naïve because it excludes other major contributors to the cost problem – hospitals and physicians.
Healthcare prices in the U.S. are considerably higher when compared to other industrialized countries, and a large part of this comes from those providing this care. In fact, providers do not want their negotiated fees with private payers to be transparent, largely under the guise that once prices are publicly known, costs would go even higher because lower-paid providers may want better deals through higher prices. This is merely a convenient approach to keep prices opaque and largely unknown. This status quo only benefits the intended stakeholders, not most Americans.
According to MapLight, a nonpartisan research organization, the American Medical Association and the American Hospital Association are the fifth and sixth largest lobbying spenders over the past decade. In the first half of 2019, the AMA has spent $11.5 million on lobbying while the AHA has spent $10.2 million. The AHA amount is equal to the combined lobbying contributions of three large insurance organizations: America’s Health Insurance Plans, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and UnitedHealth Group. Since 2008, the AMA has spent almost $228 million in lobbying, while the AHA spent over $205 million.
Sen. Sanders and all candidates (congressional included) should pledge to avoid donations and other influential contributions from all key healthcare stakeholders, including the AMA and AHA. Candidates must distance themselves from external influences that undermine a system that needs to be designed for the people, not by special interests.
These three foundational healthcare cornerstones – cost, coverage and quality – are the overriding factors that should determine whether our reformed healthcare system is run solely by the government, as some “Medicare for All” proposals tout, or through public-private reforms that improve or replace the existing Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Candidates of all parties – do the right thing – rid yourselves of conflicts of interest and represent all Iowans and Americans.
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