US Senate '08: Kitzhaber is Out
From Sunday's Outlook Portland with Nick Fish (via Willamette Week):
Discuss.
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Dec. 03, 2006
Posted in in the news 2006. |
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Dec 3, '06
Russell Sadler called this one in his latest column:
Kitzhaber is working on his labor of love -- health care reform. He has joint custody of his son, Logan, with his former wife in Portland. He is unlikely to go to Washington, D.C. for anything less than a cabinet-level post that involves health care reform if a Democrat wins the presidency in 2008.
12:40 a.m.
Dec 4, '06
Personally, I think he should be named Surgeon General by the next Democratic president. Sure, the SG usually focuses on consumer-level health issues - tobacco, condoms, healthy eating, exercise... but our health care system has become the biggest threat to the health of Americans.
Some will argue for HHS - but that person has to administer one of the largest bureaucracies in the federal government. Kitzhaber could do it, but I'm guessing he'd be better at being the point man on pushing for health care reform.... actually making sure the system delivers health, not merely care, or cheaper insurance.
Dec 4, '06
Too bad for Oregon, but a wise decision both personally and politically.
11:09 a.m.
Dec 4, '06
Speaking of healthcare, when Measure 44 passed last month, over 1 million Oregonians became eligible for the oregon Prescription Drug Plan. The only requirements are that you are 1) an Oregon resident, and 2) do not already have prescription coverage. There are no longer any age or income restrictions. That goes into effect this Thursday (December 7). The Portland Community College Cascade campus will be kicking off a sign-up campaign on that day, beginning at 11:00, in the Student Center cafeteria. There will be a press presentation prior to the sign-up.
The campus is at 705 N. Killingsworth. The Student Center faces Killingsworth, and has a rounded front.
12:40 p.m.
Dec 4, '06
I don't see Kitzhaber going to DC ever. But Surgeon General doesn't seem impossible because maybe he could use it to go around the country giving speeches rather than it being a real DC day job. But I mightbe understating the extent to which SG is a day job.
Dec 4, '06
I can't see Kitzhaber suiting up in the SG's uniform. His background and experience don't seem suitable for a public health position. On the other hand, he'd be a fantastic fit for a health care reform position, even head of HHS. Emergency room doctoring, legislative experience, and shaping the Oregon Health Plan are great credentials - but more for a position outside the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.
And correct me if I'm wrong, but Kitzhaber doesn't have an MPH. That's not a requirement, of course, but it could be an issue nonetheless.
I'm not sure that the Kitz would be especially keen on issuing public health warnings or teaching folks about lifestyle matters. Seems like it'd be marking time given his other interests. He's got other skills and different values to bring to the table.
2:42 p.m.
Dec 4, '06
I'd greatly wish for Kitz as SG if I wasn't disappointed with the way that they have become just another politicized arm of White House policy. Can you imagine the blowback from the tobacco industry when Luther Terry advocated (and achieved) a warning label on each pack? For Johnson to have withstood what must have been tremendous pressure from Southern Democrats of the day--not to mention Wall Street in general--took a lot of guts that allowed the SG to behave scientifically rather than politically.
I think the chance that Bush would appoint Kitz is close to nil, so that's a moot point--but even in a Dem admistration starting in '09, I think he'd be handcuffed. For goodness' sake, Bill Clinton all but fired Joyceln Elders for even SUGGESTING that masturbation was normal...
3:44 p.m.
Dec 4, '06
Russell was indeed right.
It doesn't suprise me much either. At least he made his intentions clear early on. This should clear the field for some other good candidates.
I'd like to see Bradbury do the same. I don't see him as a very strong candidate and frankly that's what we need this time around.
3:46 p.m.
Dec 4, '06
FYI Kari, the video isn't working.
Dec 4, '06
Bummer.
Plain and simple. My dream landscape last year consisted of Kitzhaber taking up the governor's banner once again; my disappointment was curtailed by the great work he does in health care reform here in Oregon.
A senate run by Dr. K would be invigorating, and a surefire way to send Gordon Smith packing.
But Kari brings up a good point. As Surgeon General, Kitzhaber could expand his innovative reforms nationwide--and boy, do we ever need them. If there was anyone who could clean up this mess that American health care has become, it is John Kitzhaber.
Dec 4, '06
After confronting Kitz on exactly this topic last week in a private conversation, he confided in me a much more nuanced position on the Senate race, wherein he expressed that it was definitely a possibility for him conditioned on how things evolve politically on the national scene.
The Senate would be the best platform for advancing his healthcare reform agenda, and he knows it, but won't commit unless he genuinely believes that they're ready for it. Otherwise, he'll be better off working on it from here in the comforts of Oregon.
I also know deep-pocketed supporters/confidants who have this same impression, and won't count him out until after he makes up his mind sometime late next summer, probably after a rafting trip on the Rogue over Labor Day. Until then, he's just playing coy because there would be a media storm if he hinted otherwise.
Dec 4, '06
No way would he be Surgeon General. He'd look terrible in that stupid uniform and would have to give up his beloved jeans.
8:47 p.m.
Dec 4, '06
For goodness' sake, Bill Clinton all but fired Joyceln Elders for even SUGGESTING that masturbation was normal...
No, that was a media smokescreen. She was actually fired (not "all but") when she advocated decriminalizing cocaine while her son was being simultaneously arrested for the same.
And correct me if I'm wrong, but Kitzhaber doesn't have an MPH. That's not a requirement, of course, but it could be an issue nonetheless.
Huh? I'd imagine an MD - in surgery, no less - would qualify one to be the surgeon general.
Dec 4, '06
I don't buy this business about Kitz serving in a new administration as Head of HHS, SG, or any other bureaucratic job that would definitely tie him to DC... at least as our Senator, he'd have an excuse to come back to Oregon every week.
Also, since when does being an ER doc qualify one as a surgeon (not to quibble over unimportant misperceptions), though having a Master's in Public Health (in addition to the MD) is a common qualification for the SG (who performs zero surgery but lots of public health-related duties).
Dec 4, '06
Kari,
verasoie correctly identifies the key issue. Just as one is not necessarily a Doctor of Medicine if he is addressed as "Doctor," so to one is not necessarily well-prepared to be Surgeon General if he is a qualified surgeon.
I would be shocked if C Everett Koop ever scrubbed up during his turn of service.
Sure, Kitzhaber would probably be qualified with the MD - other Surgeons General have certainly gotten by without the MPH. That said, I think he just plain wouldn't fit well in the job.
The Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, of which the Surgeon General is the director, is simply not a domain in which one can hope to achieve much on the institutional health care reform front. The PHSCC's primary concern is public health (as opposed to health care) and the department is woefully weak when it comes to immediately influencing policy-making. That weakness is the result of many historical factors and the nature of the Surgeon General's position.
12:44 a.m.
Dec 5, '06
Medicine confuses me. That's why I'm not a doctor. I stand corrected (I think). Dr. Kitzhaber practiced emergency medicine, not surgery.
In any case, I can't think of anyone more qualified to lead America out of our health care mess. And if John Kitzhaber won't do it from a perch in the US Senate (and we can't get him to run for president), well, it just seems to me that Surgeon General is a fine place to do it from.
But I don't really care much about the title. Rather, I'm hoping that the Democrats running for President take his advice on health care - and when one wins, they put him in charge of fixing the damn mess.
12:46 a.m.
Dec 5, '06
The PHSCC's primary concern is public health (as opposed to health care)
...and just to recap my earlier point: I believe that the primary threat to public health today is our health care system. That, combined with Dr. Kitzhaber's argument that we need to create a system that improves "health" not merely provides "care", makes the case for me.
Dec 5, '06
Agreed on that second post, absolutely.
Kitz can certainly keep fighting and continue to work on fixing the health care superstructure. Hopefully he can also count on the good work of Johns Hopkins School of Public Health graduates and the like to advance public health in new and effective ways. That will go a long way in keeping folks out of the doctor's office and minimizing stresses on the health care system.
In many ways, the solution probably isn't so much a the introduction of a "system" as it is convincing people to change their lifestyles, or at least making that change more palatable.
2:51 a.m.
Dec 5, '06
In many ways, the solution probably isn't so much a the introduction of a "system" as it is convincing people to change their lifestyles, or at least making that change more palatable.
Sure, sure... eat better, exercise more, etc.
Still, bad things happen to good people. From cancer to car wrecks. Our current health care system just doesn't handle those things very well. We're bankrupting families, businesses, and local governments. We're spending more and getting less than any other country in the world. There has to be a better way.
7:40 p.m.
Dec 5, '06
In many ways, the solution probably isn't so much a the introduction of a "system" as it is convincing people to change their lifestyles, or at least making that change more palatable.
Chris,
Kitzhaber's endeavor (aka Archimedes Movement) does have to do with health care, but more generally, it aims to introduce fiscal rationality into an utterly irrational system. Getting people to eat better is not enough to prevent Medicare from bankrupting the country.
I agree with Kari that Kitzhaber is uniquely qualified, AND uniquely motivated and connected, to take on this challenge. Knowing the fiscal and political sides of things (as former Governor) is every bit as important as his medical qualifications. And maybe most important of all, he's actively soliciting broad input before drafting any specific legislation.
Dec 5, '06
Pete,
Many thanks for the link.
Agreed, lifestyle campaigns are not enough to ensure that people are healthy and sound. That's only one chapter in reforming this country's health services. I've brought up that issue in response to Kari's mention of wanting to see more results in the domain of "improving health" (as opposed to "providing care") - but perhaps I've misconstrued his words - sorry, Kari!
Smacking folks upside the head and getting them to think about more prudent investments and management is an incredibly important component in solving our problems. I completely understand, and wholly endorse, what you say.
And certainly, Kitz is uniquely qualified, connected, and motivated. I just wonder what position or role - public or private - would be most suitable for him!
Dec 6, '06