It’s important not to lose sight of a few crucial details that must be included in any final healthcare reform bill if change is really going to become a reality. This was the focus of a post on Arianna Huffington’s blog last week and a few key points are worth mentioning. She writes:
Amidst the tea leaf reading and jockeying for political position, it’s important not to lose track of the things that absolutely have to be included in any health care bill for it to deliver reform in more than name only.
So what’s needed you ask? It can be difficult to remember with all the indecision and back and forth in Washington. But here’s what the post suggests healthcare reform must offer in order to create real change. It must:
- Expand access to include as many of the 46 million uninsured Americans as possible
- Give Congress the ability to negotiate with the drug companies over Medicare prescription drug prices
- Keep insurance companies from denying people coverage on the basis of pre-existing conditions or dropping customers when they actually become sick
It is interesting that this last point, keeping insurance companies from denying coverage and dropping customers, has not been mentioned very much lately by Congress - at least not publicly. This aspect seems so very important to many Americans. Imagine what the feeling might be if it were somehow not included. Trust me, it won’t be pretty!
Let us know what you feel are the most important elements that need to be included in any healthcare reform bill.
Post your comments below. We want to know what you think!
This post first appeared at Action for Better Healthcare.