When President-elect Barack Obama presented his National health care plan, red flags went up from a myriad of sources, as was expected in light of such a transformational program. The health insurance industry still has some concerns, even though it has agreed to cover all applicants without regard to pre-existing conditions. It is the National Health Insurance Exchange that still is a significant issue with them.
In this Exchange program, Americans would have a choice between a private plan and a government-sponsored plan. The idea behind the Exchange is that you can combine market forces with government intervention when it comes to reform. According to incoming Health and Human Services Secretary, Tom Daschle, the government plan would be modeled after Medicare, reported The New York Times.
The Plan would encourage competition between itself and participating private companies. Proponents say the competition that it encourages is likely to drive down market rates. The insurance industry, however, says this is not necessarily true. They argue that the opposite is true, that the government plan would likely underpay doctors for services rendered, causing private providers to raise their prices to cover their losses experienced from government plans.
In spite of differences, it seems that President-elect Obama is keeping his word regarding bringing all parties to the table. Karen Ignagni, president of America’s Health Insuranc Plans recently stated that, “A new public program similar to Medicare would exacerbate cost-shifting, which already adds $1,500, or 10%, to the average premium for a family of four.”
The incoming Obama Administration has already scheduled thousands of meetings to discuss reform, and all parties are welcomed.These are listening sessions. We are trying to find people who share Obamas goal of health care reform, even if they disagree on the specifics, said Stephanie Cutter, who is the spokesperson for the Obama transition to the White House.