Kitzhaber Slams Romney's Massachusetts Plan

A few weeks ago, the Massachusetts Legislature and Governor Mitt Romney (R) passed legislation guaranteeing universal health care. Romney's running for president, and it seems that he's trying to separate himself from the pack. So, is his plan any good?

Over at the Archimedes Movement blog, John Kitzhaber offers his take:

I applaud the Massachusetts governor and legislature for their courage and innovation; yet the plan itself is based on a false assumption. Like the Oregon Health Plan – enacted when I was senate president and implemented while I was governor – it treats only a symptom of the problem, not the problem itself. ...

Achieving universal coverage without examining what is covered and how services are delivered will do little to stem escalating medical costs, make health care more affordable or mitigate the growing disadvantage faced by U.S. businesses competing in a global economy against firms not burdened by the spiraling cost of providing health care to their employees. ...

We do need universal access but what we need access to is not the current system. We need access to a system that produces wellness, not one that simply reacts to sickness. Without elevating this debate above the question of insurance coverage, costs will continue to escalate and the current unsustainable financial equation will not change.

Head on over to Governor Kitzhaber's blog and read the rest. Discuss over there.

April 26, 2006 Posted in elsewhere.