Associations & Organizations Weigh In on Memphis Medical News

Associations & Organizations Weigh In

American Hospital Association, Rich Umbdenstock, President & CEO, March 21:

For years, America’s hospitals have worked hard to make coverage for all a reality. Today, a historic and long overdue step was taken toward achieving that worthy goal. This bill, which we support, will make a real difference in the lives of millions of Americans. Healthcare is at a tipping point, and the shortcomings within our healthcare system can no longer be ignored. Today’s vote will chart a new and better course for our nation’s health and healthcare. Bottom line: the health reform bill may not be perfect, but it expands coverage to 32 million people, enacts significant insurance market reforms and lays a solid foundation upon which we can continue to build. We applaud this landmark effort and look forward to continuing to work with the Administration, Congress and all stakeholders to further improve our health care system for the patients and communities we serve.

American Medical Association, J. James Rohack, MD, President, March 19:

After careful review and consideration, the American Medical Association today announced its qualified support for the current health reform bill as a step toward providing coverage to all Americans and improving our nation’s health system.

“The pending bill is imperfect, but we cannot let the perfect be the enemy of the good when it comes to something as important as the health of Americans,” said J. James Rohack, MD, AMA president. “By extending health coverage to the vast majority of the uninsured, improving competition and choice in the insurance marketplace, promoting prevention and wellness, reducing administrative burdens, and promoting clinical comparative effectiveness research, this bill will help patients and their physicians. While the final product is certainly not what we would have devised, we strongly support the parts of this bill that are desperately needed by millions of Americans who are struggling to get or keep health insurance coverage. We will continue to work with Congress and the administration to solve important issues that cannot be addressed through the reconciliation process.

“This is not the last step, but the next step toward real health system reform. We will remain actively engaged with Congress and the administration to ensure that before Congress adjourns there are additional important changes to our health system. Congress must act to preserve access to care for seniors and military families by permanently repealing the Medicare physician payment formula that will cut Medicare payments by 21 percent next month. According to an AARP poll, nearly 90 percent of people age 50 and older are concerned that the Medicare physician payment cuts threaten their access to care. Congress must also move immediately to correct problems with the Independent Payment Advisory Board. The current IPAB framework could result in misguided payment cuts that undermine access to care and destabilize healthcare delivery. The AMA will be relentless in our pursuit of permanent repeal of the Medicare physician payment formula, corrections to IPAB, and other important changes that we outlined in a letter today to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

“Every day physicians see the devastating effect that being uninsured has on the health of our patients: They live sicker and die younger. Physicians dedicate their lives to helping patients live healthier and longer, and we have an historic opportunity to do just that.

Tennessee Medical Association, Richard J. DePersio, MD, of Knoxville, TMA President, March 22:

We are disappointed by the final vote last night, but also realize the ongoing process gives us the opportunity to shape the implementation of reforms here in Tennessee.

We urged a no vote last night because the bill . . .

is fiscally irresponsible. What we have learned in Tennessee is that when the numbers don’t add up in a health care program, the budget shortfalls are taken out of patient care dollars.
does nothing to reduce the bureaucracy and administrative hassles of healthcare. One of the greatest cost drivers in healthcare is bureaucracy and this bill adds even more red tape and frustration for patients and medical practices.
contains no serious plans for liability reform to address the wasteful costs of defensive medicine. The bill provides for some funds to study pilot projects to reduce medical liability litigation expenses, but it is proven that limits on non-economic damages reduce lawsuits and costs, and improve access to care for patients.
sets a dangerous healthcare precedent in the creation of the Independent Payment Advisory Board. This 15-person independent board will make unilateral decisions about what gets paid for and who gets paid and how much, without accountability to CMS or HHS, and will be disastrous for patient access.”

Much of our objection was focused on the manner and the haste in which the process was carried out. There was a general degree of resentment physicians here felt over the ‘take it or leave it’ proposition. Congress should have taken more time to get a bipartisan solution, one supported by a vast majority of lawmakers, because that is what the public wanted. Lawmakers could have developed a better bill that would help patients sooner than this proposal does and one that would have cut waste immediately. We believe there was an obtainable common ground within this legislation. Congress should have slowed the process, worked together and carefully crafted a plan that the American people will truly benefit from – one that stands on its own merits and does not require political muscle and deal-making to pass.

For now, what is done is done. Now, [sic] are the ones who must take the time to prepare and work together to make this reform bill work for patients in Tennessee. We hope our country can afford the promises made to the American people, much like with Medicare. As the physicians of Tennessee, we are dedicated to using our training and abilities to continue to provide our patients with the best quality medical care and attention they need to live healthier and more productive lives.

Governor Phil Bredesen, March 22:

I congratulate the President on the passage of his health care legislation. This is a significant accomplishment for his Administration that will allow more than 30 million additional Americans full access to our healthcare system. I have long been a believer in the need for universal health coverage, and believe that this advances that goal. The expansion of Medicaid, which is incorporated in this legislation presents some challenges to Tennessee, as it does to other states as well. We are starting the process of determining just what changes we’ll need to make to implement and pay for this Medicaid expansion, although most of the work in this regard will of course fall to the next Governor. I will work hard for the remainder of my term to prepare to implement this reform and transition to a much broader system of health coverage here in Tennessee.

Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), March 22:

Tonight’s vote is disappointing, and its cost will hit our state and future generations very hard. On Friday, Governor Bredesen let me know this bill will cost Tennessee an estimated $1.1 billion in Medicaid expansion over five years – a huge unfunded mandate that creates a very difficult situation for our state. Beyond that, I think what bothers me most about the bill are its disingenuous accounting mechanisms. It’s insulting to the American people. First, the bill applies 10 years of new taxes to finance six years of spending, resulting in huge deficits over the next decades. Second, even President Obama’s own Medicare officials have determined that Medicare savings are counted TWICE in the bill, hiding the legislation’s true cost. This comes down to elementary school logic; you can’t spend the same dollar twice. And finally, almost as soon as the ink dries on this legislation, a new bill will come forth to deal with all or part of what is called the ‘doc fix’ to ensure that physicians who treat Medicare recipients do not receive a 21 percent cut. The cost of that over 10 years is more than $200 billion, proving that Americans have not been dealt with squarely on the true accounting associated with this bill.

Tennessee Health Care Campaign, Tony Garr, Executive Director, March 21:

The Tennessee Health Care Campaign is thrilled that the US House of Representatives, along with Tennessee’s Congressmen Steve Cohen, Jim Cooper, and Bart Gordon, have made history by passing national healthcare reform.

THCC has been working toward this moment for 21 years. It is only fitting that denying coverage for children with pre-existing conditions should end immediately. Why it took so long is the real questions.

AARP, Bonnie M. Cramer, MSW, Board Chair, March 19:

After a thorough analysis of the reform package, we believe this legislation brings us so much closer to helping millions of older Americans get quality, affordable healthcare. For too long, our members and others have faced spiraling prescription drug costs, discriminatory practices by insurance companies and a Medicare system awash in fraud, waste and abuse.

The legislative package cracks down on insurance company abuses and protects and strengthens guaranteed benefits in Medicare, the program millions of our members depend on and in which millions more will soon enroll. It closes the dreaded Medicare Part D ‘doughnut hole,’ a gap in prescription drug coverage that is life-threatening for many. The package stops insurance companies from pricing people out of coverage because they have an existing health problem or arbitrarily limiting the amount of care someone can receive. It also limits insurance companies’ ability to charge higher premiums based solely on age. And it improves efforts to crack down on fraud and waste in Medicare, strengthening the program for today’s seniors and future generations.

American Public Health Association, Georges C. Benjamin, MD, FACP, FACEP (E), Executive Director, March 21:

The American Public Health Association applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for its historic vote today to reform our nation’s health system. For nearly a century, providing quality, affordable care to all Americans has eluded our grasp. Today’s vote, however, changes all that. This measure will strengthen our public health system, invest in prevention, improve the health of the American people and move us closer to providing comprehensive and affordable health coverage for all Americans.

We congratulate the House for its courage and leadership on this defining issue and urge the Senate to move quickly in passing the related reconciliation improvements to the health reform measure. On behalf of the American Public Health Association, we pledge our commitment to helping strengthen and improve the health of individuals and communities across this nation.