Executive Summary posted May 5, 2009 by Walton Francis
Executive Summary: Why a New Public Plan Will Not Improve American Health Care
A sticking point in crafting major national health care reform
legislation, according to media accounts, is whether or not
Congress should create a new "public plan" as an alternative in
competition with private insurance plans. The role of a public plan
has become something of a litmus test in the debate over reform.
The Washington Post correctly says the…
Backgrounder posted May 5, 2009 by Walton Francis
Why a New Public Plan Will Not Improve American Health Care
A sticking point in crafting major national health care reform
legislation, according to media accounts, is whether or not
Congress should create a new "public" plan as an alternative
to private insurance plans. The role of a public plan has become
something of a litmus test in the debate over reform. The
Washington Post correctly says the "fixation on a public…
Backgrounder posted August 7, 2003 by Walton Francis
Using the Federal Employees' Model: Nine Tests for RationalMedicare Reform
Congress faces a prominent and fundamental
issue in deciding among Medicare reform options and alternatives.
The choice is ultimately between two models--consumer choice or
detailed legislative and bureaucratic control of benefit design,
prices, and operational decisions.
Outdated Political Centralization
Today, the Medicare program is
overwhelmingly statist.…
Backgrounder posted August 7, 2003 by Walton Francis
The FEHBP as a Model for Medicare Reform: Separating Fact fromFiction
Members of the House-Senate conference on
Medicare legislation are deciding the future of the Medicare
program. Section 241 of the Medicare Prescription Drug and
Modernization Act, passed by the House of Representatives, attempts
to create a reformed Medicare system in 2010. The Senate version
does not seriously attempt to provide for a consumer-driven version
of…