A Prescription for 2008: What the Next President Needs to Know About Health Reform

Whoever becomes our 44th president will have to put health reform right at the top of his-or her-agenda. The question is not whether there will be reform-the question is what direction it will take. Already now, in early 2007, we can see the contours of two very distinctly different ideas of how to reform our health care system. On the Democratic side, Senators Clinton and Obama, and former senator John Edwards, are all in favor of national, single payer health insurance. On the Republican side, Governor Mitt Romney has a strong record of health reform. He was instrumental in putting together an interesting market-based health reform in Massachusetts. Is his model strong enough to be a credible alternative to a universal, single payer system?This book discusses the two main alternatives and points to weaknesses in the single payer model: very high taxes, unacceptable waiting lists, inefficiencies and the often overlooked ethical problems with government-run health care. Unless the Democrats can show how they want to overcome these problems, voters should look for other solutions. At the same time, this book also recognizes that the best alternative-the Romney model-is far from perfect. It is filled with bureaucratic stumbling blocks and its costs to taxpayers are underestimated. This book suggests how some key reforms to the Romney model can make it a credible platform for fixing our nation's health care system.