An estimated 100 protesters gathered for a short morning rally against the health insurance industry at the AHIP Institute 2009 conference Thursday at the San Diego Convention Center.
While this was a far cry from the more than 1,000 protesters that greeted attendees at last year's AHIP Institute in San Francisco, two protestors did get onstage in San Diego - momentarily upstaging moderator Susan Dentzer before she introduced the three former governors in the opening keynote.
The male protester's words were unintelligible to many in the audience, although one attendee reported that he said, "Buy them all." The man was quickly removed by security, along with his female companion, who held up an oversized facsimile of a check.
The male protester is a member of the California Nurses Association (CNA), which was one of the groups organizing the protest, and was a paid registrant to the conference, said San Diego police officer Michael Tansey.
The protester was warned that if he re-entered the convention center he would be arrested for trespassing, but the CNA member was cooperative and left the premises, Tansey said.
The other protesters outside the convention center only stayed long enough to greet attendees streaming in for the opening keynote and then left.
Meanwhile, inside the building, Dentzer recovered to repeat what she'd said before she was interrupted - that the healthcare reform debate is "broad-gauged and multi-perspective."
Howard Dean, MD, former governor of Vermont, thanked the protester for relieving him of being "the most liberal person in the room."
Turning serious, Dean was adamant when he said, "Healthcare reform is not worth it unless there is a public plan option." He stressed that a combination of private plans and a public plan would give Americans choice in healthcare coverage.
Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida, said there was too much focus on access and not enough on prevention and quality. He advocated for crossing state lines to purchase health insurance and less government regulation. "Beware of too much intrusion of the federal government," he cautioned.
John Kitzhaber, MD, former governor of Oregon, said that health insurance is not a main driver of the crisis; rather, it is business model problem. He suggested, as initial steps, agreeing upon a set of objectives, coming up with an accurate diagnosis of the problem and developing a clear description of design elements.
Kitzhaber said medical care only accounts for 10 percent of a person's health status. With a focus on health versus healthcare, healthcare reform should focus on improving population health, reducing per capita cost and improving the patient experience.
"We're all in this together," he said. Kitzhaber proposed a challenge to the industry: Stop arguing and focus on how we can redesign the business model. "The objective is health," he said.