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Market Based Health Care Reform Alternatives Everyone should know

Government-based overhaul completely monopolized the debate on health care.

Here are seven examples of successful market-based health care alternatives, you should know.

Government health care safe, get a lot of media attention. are just in the last month alone have about 13,000 new stories with the word "government" and the term "health care reform." In contrast, there were fewer than 300 messages have been during the last month with the two terms "market" and the "health reform".

This is a ratio of 43 stories about the public health system for every one story about market-based Healthcare-Government-based 'reform' has completely monopolized the debate.

Given the momentum in Congress for a kind of government in health care overhaul, the attention of the media is understandable. But at the same time that Congress debates various versions of Obamacare and holds several public options, some market-based solutions for healthcare gone largely unnoticed, despite the fact that it successfully reduced medical costs and improve both access and quality of service.

Here seven of these are examples of market-based health care alternatives:

1st Retail clinics. There are now 1200 retail clinics across the country offering high quality medical care at lower costs than emergency rooms or clinics. They offer better and faster service, with longer hours and more comfortable than a traditional doctor's office.

Providers include hospitals Target (Minnesota and Maryland), in select clinics minutes CVS pharmacies in 24 states, Wal-Mart clinics in 11 states, Take Care Select Walgreens clinics in 32 metro areas that serve the Little Publix and Kroger grocery stores, select clinics in 11 states and Roadside Medical Clinic Labs drivers at truck stops in three states. Typically, by nurse practitioners is busy, retail clinics offer basic services such as sports medicine for less than $ 29, and were of insurance, Employers have been praised, and consumers for its convenience and affordability, and serve as an effective way to the uninsured.

2nd Hospital Retail Clinic Partnerships. Thus, a full range of medical services to offer, from flu vaccinations to major surgery, some clinics such as retail clinics minutes ago recently, partnerships with major hospitals as Allina Hospitals in Minnesota and the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio occurred (see a recent news report here). These partnerships Patients enable links in both directions, as some of its retail clinics refer patients to refer themselves to hospitals for more serious illnesses and hospitals some of their patients for retail for small services such as flu shot clinics. Electronic Medical Record-sharing is a seamless transition for the patients in to allow both directions.

3rd On-site workplace health clinics. According to a report from National Public Radio "More than 1,000 large companies in the U.S. have on-site, primary health care clinics. They serve about 5 percent of working people ... but the number could grow to 15 percent by the year 2015. "Some studies show, companies can reduce health care costs by up to 30 percent, the report later.

For example, in addition to operating aid Take Care Clinics in its pharmacies across the country, including Walgreens now offers Take Care Health Employer Solutions, which provides primary health care clinics in the workplace on the ground Pharmacies, dental and vision services, and exercise and fitness programs.

4th Affordable $ 4 generics. In 2008, Wal-Mart began offering more than 1,000 over-the-counter prescription drugs for $ 4 or less and are then forced to offer other retailers such as Target, Walgreens, Kroger and other discounts. Wal-Mart claims that its customers have already saved more than $ 1000000000 as the $ 4 drug program was introduced, and that does not count the additional savings in the millions for the thousands of customers, the $ 4 drug buy at Wal-Mart's competitors.

In September, Wal-Mart introduced a new $ 10 prescription drug program that a 90-day supply and free delivery of mail anywhere in the country, American consumers still includes save more money, and they have not even close to living in a Wal-Mart. Thanks to Wal-Mart and its competitors, the cost of prescription drugs have been dramatically in recent years, and it is unlikely that any government the reform fits this type of market-based economies.

5th Prepaid medical plans. For about the same monthly cost as a mobile phone (annual Fee of $ 480 for singles, $ 580 for couples and $ 680 for families) The No Insurance Club offers affordable, pre-paid plans in health care, that the basic medical services cover (12 office visits) from a participating board-certified physician, with no deductibles, no premiums and no additional Co-payments. Customers and physicians enter directly into a physician-patient relationship without having to go through a third party, and even pre-existing conditions are described under the No-Club Insurance Plans. Although currently not in every market, the cover is gradually expanded around the country.

6th Concierge medicine. This provides basic medical care by family practice physicians for annual membership fee of $ 1,000 to $ 1,800 reported, and the doctor directly to the patient, and not an insurance company or Medicare, as its main customers. Concierge Practices generally include 24 / 7 access to a personal physician phone, same day appointments with no waiting, personal coordination of care with specialists, personal Follow-up, if a hospital admitted, and even home visits. While a typical doctor has more than 2,000 patients, a concierge doctor generally limits his or her practice 300-600 patients. Examples include concierge medicine providers MDVIP and concierge medicine today.

7th High-deductible Health Insurance plans together with individually owned and managed health savings accounts (HSAs). This consumer-oriented approach could be as MackeyCare, "Whole Foods, after CEO John Mackey, this plan outlined in its 11th August 2009, Wall Street Journal "The Whole Foods alternative to Obamacare." The details of the MackeyCare work like this:

Whole Foods Market will pay 100 percent of the premiums for all team members, 30 or more hours per week (about 89 percent of all team members) work for our high-deductible Health insurance plan. We also spend up to $ 1,800 extra per year health dollar deposits on employees' personal wellness accounts as on to choose their own health and wellness.

Money not spent in one year to the next rolls and grows over time. Our employees spend so their own health care dollars, is covered by the annual deductible (approximately $ 2,500) and the insurance plan comes in. This creates incentives for the first $ 2500 to spend more carefully. Our plan costs are much lower than traditional health insurance, while providing a very high degree of employee satisfaction.

he number of American workers by HSAs and high-deductible health insurance is now covered about eight million, and would probably continue to rise if some form Obamacare of passports with a public option. According to Investor's Business Daily, the government health sector reform "would be no room for cheap, Basic plans, which, like true insurance cover only the big costs and require policyholders to pay out-of-pocket for routine care and drugs "But would instead benefit" plans, so quite cover everything with little or no co-payments. "

So during the Congress now discussed, is how to control rising health care costs and increasing access to medical care through state intervention and a public option the private market is already many health care reforms on its own offering affordable access to more than 1,000 retail clinics in pharmacies, truck stops and jobs throughout the Country; drug reduces costs associated with prescriptions for $ 4 or less everywhere in the country, the introduction of innovative prepaid medical plans and concierge, the restoration of direct doctor-patient relationship, and the eight million employees HSAs.

When it comes to reducing costs and improving quality and service Government companies have a miserable track record, and competitive markets, have a proven, excellent balance sheet. If we want to make health care affordable and accessible, we should encourage more competition and more market-based solutions such as the examples above, and not less government intervention. Unfortunately, The politicians in Washington have backwards.

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