The American College of Physicians, the nation's largest medical specialty group, yesterday endorsed single-payer healthcare as a national reform agenda.
ACP, with 124,000 members, said after careful evaluation of the health systems of 12 other nations, it is ready to stand behind a singl- payer national healthcare system as the "one pathway" to universal coverage.
"This new proposal by the ACP brings single payer into the mainstream," said C. Anderson Hedberg, MD, president emeritus of the ACP. "It's the logical next step."
A spokesman for ACP said the organization has advocated universal coverage since 1990, and has proposed reform plans since 2002 based on a pluralistic model, but this is the first time it has endorsed single-payer national health insurance.
"There's really only one choice for universal healthcare at a cost we can afford, and that's single payer, Medicare for All," said Marcia Angell, MD, former editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine. "There is simply no way to cover everyone in a pluralistic system and control costs."
According to Quentin Young, a "Master" in the ACP and National Coordinator of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) this endorsement will put more pressure on the issue of universal healthcare in the upcoming presidential election. "It recognizes the political feasibility of single payer as well as its importance as a leading option for healthcare reform," Young said.
PNHP is a 15,000 member organization headquartered in Chicago that has advocated for single-payer national health insurance since 1986.
ACP said its recommendation is based on a large and growing body of evidence that the U.S. healthcare system is performing poorly compared to nations with single-payer national health insurance. An article by ACP published this month in the Annals of Internal Medicine said single-payer systems are more equitable, have lower administrative costs and high levels of consumer satisfaction. They also measure high for quality.
"The ACP endorsement of single payer is an important step forward for the medical profession," said John Geyman, MD, past president of PNHP. "Instead of ideology and unbridled self-interest, they are putting patients' needs first."
Though several Democratic presidential candidates have promoted universal healthcare, only Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) has laid out a single-payer system as the best option.