Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report

The health insurance industry is "closest to the parasitic relationship imposed by the Mafia," with companies "raking in hefty profits and bloating cost, without providing any benefit at all," Jonathan Kellerman, a clinical professor of pediatrics and psychology at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine and a novelist, writes in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece.

According to Kellerman, in any industry, the "middleman interposed between seller and buyer raises the price of a given service or product," and, although some "intermediaries justify this by providing benefits" or physical facilities, health insurers "provide nothing other than an ambiguous, shifty notion of 'protection.'"

The health insurance business model "is unique in that profits depend upon goods and services not being provided," he writes, adding that, as a result, the "consequences of any insurance-based health care model" will "be progressively draconian rationing using denial of authorization and steadily rising copayments" for consumers and "massive paperwork and other bureaucratic hurdles, Health Food and steadily diminishing fee-recovery," for health care providers. Kellerman writes that, although most health care reform efforts "emphasize the need to get more people insured," such an approach makes health insurance an "important commodity," rather than a "service delivered by doctor to patient."

He adds that "perhaps the solution" to increased health care costs, bureaucracy and "diminishing levels of service" is "a radically different approach: fewer people insured." In the event that "substantial numbers of health care providers shook off the insurance monkey on their back" and the "supply of providers was substantially increased by opening more medical schools,"Health Food a "more honest, cost-effective system benefiting everyone" except health insurers would result, according to Kellerman.

Business Forum 2007

Untangling the Topics.

Daily you hear, read, discuss, and debate the topics that are shaping the health care industry—Personal Health Records(PHRs), interoperability, wellness, data standards, engaging consumers, innovative plan design, increased quality and access, lower costs, value-based benefits and more.

We know the topics, but a question remains.

How can these important initiatives be successfully blended and implemented to provide what the industry is asking for—better information, better decisions, and a better health care system?

AHIP’s Business Forum 2007 is designed to encourage discussions about the products and services that are being heralded to catapult our health care system forward.

To keep the conference lively and bold, the speakers are from all areas of the industry—employers, health insurance plans, government, academia, and product vendors. The size of the conference encourages candid debates designed to break through the clutter and sculpt real solutions. For example:

How are employers and health insurers working together to create value in health care?
How can wellness programs increase employee productivity and decrease cost?
Will PHRs help to streamline care and create efficiencies?

How can health insurers streamline their business operations to be more efficient?
How can the industry work together to educate and engage consumers to become more involved in decision-making?

Help untangle the topics–and challenges–when you register for Business Forum 2007.