Dean of the Harvard Medical School Gives Obama-care an “F”
Bill Shuster says:
A must read from the Wall Street Journal.
Health ‘Reform’ Gets a Failing Grade
The changes proposed by Congress will require more draconian measures down the road. Just look at Massachusetts.
By JEFFREY S. FLIER
As the dean of Harvard Medical School I am frequently asked to comment on the health-reform debate. I’d give it a failing grade.
Speeches and news reports can lead you to believe that proposed congressional legislation would tackle the problems of cost, access and quality. But that’s not true. The various bills do deal with access by expanding Medicaid and mandating subsidized insurance at substantial cost—and thus addresses an important social goal. However, there are no provisions to substantively control the growth of costs or raise the quality of care. So the overall effort will fail to qualify as reform.
We should not be making public policy in such a crucial area by keeping the electorate ignorant of the actual road ahead.
Read more at online.wsj.com
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merriemarie November 18, 2009 4:11 pm
jatfla November 18, 2009 9:15 pm
jeff willhelm November 18, 2009 9:56 pm
Nathan Rein November 18, 2009 10:31 pm
it’s worth reading the actual article, which, apart from the somewhat disingenuous WSJ headline, is mainly critical of the spotty way both sides on the health-care reform debate have presented the facts to the public. those favoring reform have not been forthcoming about the plan’s drawbacks, to be sure. however, nothing in this article contradicts the opinion that the force driving health-care costs up has more to do with the insurance lobby than with leglslative mandates and public investment. that may or may not be true — i’m no expert — but the point is, the article doesn’t say. let’s not pretend that Flier is condemning the basic idea of reform that the Obama administration has tried to enact (and has so far had only very partial success).