During the State of the Union address President Obama said he would be open to any good ideas to reform our health care system. Below are a few ideas I have to reduce health care costs while providing excellent standards of patient care.
· Allow small businesses to pool together to purchase plans at lower costs
· Pre-empt state insurance regulations that prevent individuals from buying the coverages they want
· Negotiate the bulk purchase of prescription drugs bought by the world’s largest drug customers, the U.S. taxpayers
· Stop waste, fraud and abuse of the Medicare and Medicaid programs
· Adopt meaningful tort reforms to limit truly frivolous lawsuits and exorbitant legal fees
· Add technology in rural areas, use new tools to reduce medical errors
· Increase training and jobs for health care professionals in rural communities
· Eliminate insurance discrimination based on age, health, or genetics
· Place greater emphasis on prevention and wellness
As we move forward with the health care debate, I hope the Democratic leadership will be willing to listen to some of these ideas and include them in a reform package. Let’s hope we can add a little Southern Missouri common sense to the process!
Thank you for your continued support!
