Patients Choice Act of 2009 Summary

GOP Leaders Unveiling Patients Choice Act of 2009 © Talknewsradio

Here are the core concepts of the Patients Choice Act of 2009 (PCA) pulled directly from the official summary.

Emphasize Prevention
Five preventable chronic conditions consume 75% of our health spending and cause two!thirds of American deaths.  Investing in prevention will lower long!term costs and ensure Americans live longer and happier lives.  Solutions should change “sick care” into “health care.”

Create a Market that Works for Patients
The status quo regulation of the insurance market does not provide incentives for insurance companies to cover chronically sick patients and many sick patients are unable to afford premiums.  Businesses must play by transparent rules and compete for patients’ business.  The market must work for every patient every time.  Patients should have convenient and affordable options, and they should have control of those options.  Doctors, hospitals, and nurses should be more involved in patient!centered care.

Guarantee Choice of Coverage Options
Patients should be able to choose from a variety of private insurance plans. The federal government would run a health care system—or a public plan option—with the compassion of the IRS, the efficiency of the post office, and the incompetence of Katrina.  We cannot entrust the federal government to deliver high quality health care to every American.  All Americans have a right to personalized and individual health care that will meet their unique needs.

Insist on Fairness for Every Patient
Patients already in government programs deserve a human approach to their health benefits and fewer bureaucratic barriers.  Individuals struggling to purchase their own health insurance deserve the same tax breaks as Americans working in Fortune 500 Companies.  Medicare beneficiaries deserve delivery choice when selecting between health benefits.

Fairly Compensate Patient Injuries
Patients should have the right to fair legal representation and fair compensation for tragic, inexcusable mistakes in the health care field.  However, today’s legal system serves the self!interest of personal injury lawyers, drives up costs, and delays justice.  Science! driven and results!oriented change is needed today.

No Tax Increases or New Government Spending
America spends more than $2.4 trillion on health care every year—16.6 percent of our gross domestic product.8  On a per capita basis that is nearly twice what other industrialized nations spend,9 and it is 25 percent more than Switzerland, the next biggest spender, spends.  Entitlement program liabilities threaten our nation’s long!term fiscal stability.  Future generations of Americans will have to pay $36 trillion in new taxes to keep the promises made by today’s politicians for the Medicare program alone.  Last year, the federal government estimated that without reforms, the Medicaid program will spend at least $4.9 trillion over the next 10 years.10 Washington has already proven we cannot spend our way out of this problem.  Innovative solutions should focus on making health care more affordable, especially when cost is a major barrier to access.

Restore Accountability to Government Programs
The children covered under government health care programs today will face future tax increases in order to pay the $36 trillion unfunded liabilities in the Medicare program alone.  Medicaid fraud and mismanagement waste at least $32.7 billion in taxpayer dollars every year.  Reforms must bring about efficiency, transparency, and results.   Failure to act now will jeopardize our nation’s long!term fiscal security.

Include Ideas from Governors and States
Rather than one!size!fits all Washington mandates, a comprehensive solution to health reform must include governors, state legislatures, and every American citizen.

Click on the link to download the entire summary of the PCA and spread the word quickly. Congress will be voting on a new health care system in July.

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