http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas Californians Weigh In on Health Care Reform Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:06:10 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Provocative statement… yes. True…yes. Inevitable…no. If at the end of the current partisan rhetorical warfare in Washington, some actual legislation emerges this fall, many will rejoice in the creation of a concept of an American system of health care. Hopefully the troika of affordable costs, reasonable access, and high quality will ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/07/01/health-reform-will-fail/ Many of the comments responding to our disparities postings have reflected a certain cynicism and skepticism about our calls to address the public’s health using intervention approaches that fall outside of the health care or even traditional public health arena. Let’s take physical activity, my favorite example of non-pharmacological, non-surgical, non-psychotherapeutic ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/29/how-about-some-really-out-of-the-box-thinking/ Dr. Claudia Chaufan makes some good points in her recent post about the excesses of U.S. health care finance. Like her, I can’t justify executive salaries at for-profit health plans in the tens or hundreds of millions. But the stratospheric total she cites – $1.75 billion in compensation ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/25/final-thoughts-on-rethinking-our-approach-to-spending/ I hope that as many people as possible were able to listen to the June broadcast of Health Dialogues, in which I had the privilege of discussing health reform with Dr. Toni Yancey of UCLA and Dr. Tony Iton, Director of the Alameda County Public Health Department. These two ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/23/reflections-on-last-weeks-health-dialogues/ If you were puzzled that none other than Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius made the clearest point thus far that President Obama does not support single payer, you are not alone. Let us speculate: did Sebelius want to make sure that you had no doubts about it – ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/23/why-the-white-house-opposes-single-payer-and-what-you-can-do-about-it/ In my recent post, I referenced how California consumers can get involved in the national health reform debate. But even with so much happening in Washington, D.C., Californians should also pay attention to what's going on in Sacramento. My colleagues Ellen Wu and Lark Galloway Gilliam appropriately spotlighted the ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/16/focusing-the-health-care-debate-on-california/ There has been a lot of discussion about creating a public plan that would compete with the existing panoply of private options. I am not ideologically opposed to having a public alternative, but it must be done in a way that levels the playing field. We should look ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/16/my-rules-for-creating-a-competing-public-plan/ President Obama spent last weekend excited by Atul Gawande’s article in the New Yorker. In it, Dr. Gawande travelled to McAllen, Texas, one of those places where health care is very expensive and not very effective. Dr. Gawande put a human face on the research contained in the ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/12/the-most-dangerous-thing-in-american-health-care-is-barack-obama-carrying-the-dartmouth-atlas/ Anthony Wright’s recent post correctly urges readers to participate in this summer’s health reform debate. If legislation passes, it will have far-reaching impact on U.S. households and the health care system. The priorities and concerns of health care consumers should be central as the discussion unfolds. ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/12/are-we-ready-to-make-the-public-good-a-priority/ One problem with heath care reform is that we speak in platitudes. How many times have we heard the promise to improve quality, lower costs and increase access?  This sets unrealistic expectations for reform and, ultimately, its demise when it is shown that the policies can’t deliver. Prevention is a ... http://blogs.kqed.org/healthyideas/2009/06/12/prevention-isnt-a-cure-all-but-its-a-great-place-to-start/