Chip on Health Care

Problem: The health care system in America is in dire need of reform. At $2.4 trillion each year, the current cost of health care is unsustainable; American citizens are suffering due to a lack of adequate coverage. In addition, the recently passed “Obamacare” will increase the total cost of healthcare and decrease quality. All citizens must have access to affordable, quality health care that can be maintained at reasonable cost regardless of employment or preexisting conditions.

Solutions: The first step to affordable, quality health care is to repeal Obamacare and replace it with the following initiatives.

• Protect all individuals by making it illegal to deny access to health insurance based on pre existing conditions.
• Open up insurance markets across state lines, allowing more choices for individuals and fostering competition among providers, thus decreasing the cost of insurance and increasing the quality of service.
• Individuals and families must own and control their own health insurance policies that they can keep regardless of where they are employed. The current system of unlimited tax breaks on employer sponsored health care plans must be changed. Individuals and families should receive tax deductions, tax credits or both for the health insurance premiums they pay for out of pocket.
• Medical liability reforms are necessary to end costly junk lawsuits and put an end to unnecessary medical costs due to fear of retribution. There are currently successful state laws on this issue that reduce spending and lower insurance premiums.
• Immediate action must be taken to prevent insurers from canceling a policy based upon simple errors on application forms and other insufficient grounds.
• Small businesses and individuals must be given the right to combine their purchasing power to offer health insurance at lower costs.
• We must encourage innovation at the state level by providing incentive payments to states that reduce premiums and the number of people uninsured, without expanding government or creating new government programs.
• Enhance Health Savings Accounts to allow and encourage individuals and families to save for future needs, and allow the use of such accounts for the payment of health insurance premiums.

Clearly the issue of health care is complex and of utmost importance. Without question, we as a Nation, need to control the cost of care, while ensuring that all citizens have access to necessary care. These common sense solutions will go a long way toward that goal, while avoiding the ultimate doom we are witnessing with government run health care programs around the globe.