Health care critics missing the point

By Ron Gettelfinger

According to some, the sweeping health care reform bill President Obama signed into law has signaled the end of the world.

As ridiculous as that sounds, this bit of hyperbole is not only spewing from conservative radio talk show hosts and tea party bloggers; it's also coming from some GOP Congressional leaders.

"Armageddon" is what House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, called the bill.

Of course, Rep. Boehner doesn't really think it's the end of the world. He just wants to join an increasingly shrill minority who want to use health care reform as a hammer against the Democrats in Congress who had the courage to stand up and pass legislation that will ensure quality, affordable health care coverage for most Americans.

What he should have said is the reforms will prevent an Armageddon -- the economic one we were headed toward had we allowed health care costs' inflationary spiral to drag the U.S. economy down any further.

Family premiums for employer-sponsored health coverage have increased 131 percent in the last 10 years, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services expect health care spending to gobble up 17.3 percent of our Gross Domestic Product in 2009. No other industrialized country even comes close to that figure.

With enactment of this historic initiative, which presidents since Theodore Roosevelt only dreamed of, our country finally joins the rest of the developed world in guaranteeing health care coverage for their citizens.

The health care reform law finally ends some of the worst abuses by highly profitable insurance companies. It also ensures health care coverage for those who suffer needlessly because they can't afford to seek care.

Many know the law will ban denial of coverage for those with pre-existing conditions, and allow people under age 26 to remain on their parents' health insurance policies. It also will ensure that individuals and small businesses will be able to purchase affordable health care coverage through insurance exchanges instead of having to rely on expensive emergency room services for primary care.

The law will also benefit senior citizens. It will close the infamous gap in coverage known as the "doughnut hole" in the Medicare Part D prescription drug program, and provide free preventative care for seniors. And it will establish a reinsurance program to encourage employers and voluntary employee beneficiary associations to continue coverage for early retirees.

At the same time, the law takes a number of steps to control rising health care costs. It will reform provider payment and delivery mechanisms to encourage physicians and hospitals to deliver quality care more efficiently. The insurance exchanges also will allow individuals and small businesses to purchase coverage at better rates.

The new law also contains many lesser-known improvements.

It provides scholarships for mid-career health industry job training. That will go a long way toward helping middle-aged, unemployed workers back into the job market. They're a demographic that often faces the most challenges in finding a new job.

It also provides community funding to coordinate services for underserved, low-income populations. That means more primary care outside of expensive emergency rooms and lower costs for all of us.

To help pay for health care reform, the new law charges drug companies a fee based on sales of brand-name drugs, which accounts for the largest share of the pharmaceutical industry's profits. Think of the fee as taxpayers' return on investment. Much of the research and development of brand-name drugs takes place at taxpayer-funded universities while Big Pharma pockets the profits from their sales.

The law also requires taxpayers with incomes over $200,000 to pay higher Medicare hospital insurance taxes. This represents a clear departure from the policies of the Bush administration, which showered tax breaks on the rich and corporations and helped to create record-breaking budget deficits.

The next time critics tell you the health care reform law is going to hurt America, take a look at their real motivation: this fall's elections. They have no plan for America beyond Nov. 2. While that's not exactly Armageddon, it's no way to run a country.

Ron Gettelfinger is president of the UAW. This op-ed originally appeared in the May 5, 2010 edition of the Detroit News.

 The views expressed by contributors to At Issue do not necessarily reflect the positions of the UAW.