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Health Care Crisis is Looming: Capital Medical Center Chief Calls for Imminent Action; Panel Generates Ideas for Reform

Posted on: Saturday, 3 June 2006, 12:00 CDT

By Rolf Boone, The Olympian, Olympia, Wash.

Jun. 3--OLYMPIA - A group of Thurston County professionals heard some sobering information on the state of health care here and across the country Friday.

"The system is not broke now, but it will be soon," said Capital Medical Center chief executive Joe Sharp, who addressed a group of about 110 people at Thurston County Economic Development Council forum on health care.

The forum was held Friday afternoon at the Red Lion Olympia Hotel.

It wasn't all bleak as possible solutions and ideas were offered by the guest speakers to address the growing numbers of uninsured and the rising cost of health insurance.

Some of those ideas include recognizing the importance of personal responsibility for one's own health, widening the pool of health insurance coverage, and addressing problems with federal and state programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

"Is health care a right? I think it is," said Sharp. "And if society thinks it's a right, then we have to figure out how to pay for it."

But the problems with the U.S. health care system outweigh the solutions, the panel agreed.

Of the eight largest world economies that make up what is known as the G-8, the U.S. health care system ranks seventh, according to Michael Arnis, senior health policy advisor for the state Office of the Insurance Commissioner.

"We used to be last, until we added Russia," Arnis added.

It gets worse: There are an estimated 50 million Americans without health insurance and another 20 million families that have difficulty paying their health care bills, according to data shared by both Sharp and Arnis.

Another key issue for the medical professionals who spoke was the additional burden of picking up costs that should be paid for by Medicare and Medicaid.

Sharp alleged that the federal and state programs have "never paid their fair share" of medical expenses.

But he didn't lay all the blame for the country's health care woes at the feet of public programs. Sharp also charged that some large U.S. companies were at fault because they were emphasizing profits over employee health care coverage.

Businesses and other agencies that do offer health coverage, however, are also feeling the pain of rising health care costs.

Of Intercity Transit's $20 million budget, $2 million goes toward health care coverage for 250 employees, IT General Manager Mike Harbour estimated.

Harbour favors a plan where some level of health care coverage would be offered to everyone thereby lowering overall health care costs.

At the very least, Sharp urged those in attendance Friday to get involved.

"Get people insured," he said. "Let's not wait on the federal government."

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Olympian, Olympia, Wash.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Olympian, Olympia, Wash.

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