Who's Guarding Healthcare's Hen House?
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Healthcare reform, I have not written about it, but it is always on my mind. In a 2008 New England Journal of Medicine report, 90% of Americans believed our medical system requires “fundamental change.” I am one of these people. How hopelessly naïve of me to think the individuals in charge actually knew “what” required this fundamental change. S
urely, it was obvious that we should be less concerned about "how" to pay for the healthcare status quo and more focused on reforming "what" constitutes the status quo.
What is the status quo of healthcare in the United States? We have by far the most expensive health care system in the world. So we get what we pay for, right? The statistics do not show this value. The U.S. now ranks last out of 19 countries for unnecessary death – deaths that could have been avoided through timely and effective medical care. Chronic debilitating disease kept one in six working-age adults (18 percent) out of the work place in 2006. The annual healthcare spending per person in the U.S. is double that of our like countrymen, yet we rank ourselves next to last in percent perceived value.
In regard to these statistics, why are we not more focused on the reason care is so expensive? Why efficacy is so poor? Why perceived value is so low? Instead, our Congress is about to pass a healthcare “reform” bill that reforms nothing but the way in which a broken system is paid. Wow.
How do they say this $856 billion proposal will be paid for? U.S. News and World Report published an article the end of September stating most of it will come from taxes on some high-cost insurance plans, Medicare cost reductions, and cuts in federal benefits. They also target three industries from which they will collect fees to the tune of $13 billion: pharmaceuticals, health insurance, and medical devices. I’m thinking so far so good. This is what the breakout looks like.
U.S. based pharmaceuticals brought in $44 billion and will be asked to pay $2.3 billion in annual fees. This represents about 5.2 percent of their industry profits. Health insurers brought in $11.3 billion and will be asked to pay $6.7 billion in fees resulting in 59 percent of their annual profits. And the medical device industry, who earned about $5.1 billion over the last year, is being asked to pony up $4 billion in fees an enormous 78 percent of their profits. Ouch. It is easy to see the pharmaceutical companies are the Big Winners. No wonder they are endorsing this bill after spending an average of $160 million a year to block other reform efforts.
The trade organization for the global pharmaceutical companies is called PhRMA. The recent deal struck between PhRMA and the White House and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus reveals a slightly different scenario. This plan calls for an $80 billion contribution to be paid out over the next ten years, yet th
is comes with significant strings attached to keep PhRMA securely in control. In a recent article from “The Hill”, Ralph Neas, the CEO of the nonpartisan National Coalition on Healthcare commented, “We don’t want to demonize any sector of the healthcare economy,” Neas said, but added, “Do I think that PhRMA got an especially good deal? Yes.”
Let’s stick with the number game for a moment. PhRMA spends about $200 million per year lobbying their interests on Capitol Hill. They spend $7 billion per year on gifts for doctors. Of course these doctors will say that nothing sways their professional judgment, but ethics studies tell us differently. PhRMA spends $30 billion (yes, billion) per year in the U.S. on direct marketing and advertising. This direct-to-consumer practice was actually prohibited until 1986 because, of course, controlled substances should be dealt with differently than the best cheeseburger or hair gel.
In my last post, I referenced the book “Blink” and the idea of rapid cognition, the powerful workings of our mind below the conscious level. So what does this have to do with healthcare and the major issues we face? I believe a great deal. These slick direct marketing tactics do “sell” you a drug, a vaccine, a treatment, a procedure, a power wheelchair, and a state of mind. The way you and your doctor thin-slice reality becomes a lot more disease management than health care, and if it did not work, PhRMA would not continue to spend $30 billion dollars a year on it. Some sources report this staggering amount is more than twice what they spend per year on research, development, and manufacturing of their drugs.
Astonishing.
The advancement in pharmaceuticals is a critical part of the modern care of individuals. They can save lives… They helped save my dad’s life. The problem is they have controlled the healthcare industry in the U.S. for years and many alternative therapies which also save lives are not paid for because there is no profit in it for the individuals with deep enough pockets to fund mass studies. Over 2/3 of all scientific studies performed on medications are now funded directly by the pharmaceutical industry, and most of the physician information is derived directly from their drug representatives. Complete and unbiased information becomes increasingly difficult to access. We need to put free-thinking, innovative, and holistic healthcare professionals back in charge of the healthcare system rather than the stock holders and profits of PhRMA.
The concern should not be the presence of a government public option for healthcare. I believe all Americans should have the security of coverage, and I am grateful for our country’s desire to see this as vitally important. The issue is that under the current “reform” bill government run healthcare is PhRMA run healthcare, and I do not trust this is the system we want for the long term welfare of our children or their nation.
Our children do have the brains, courage, hope, technology, and heart to take this situation back over. This is our son Kyle. He wants to be a doctor like his daddy. I want him to use his remarkable brain to find a cure for ALS.
Am I biased? You bet your bloomers I am. Collectively Kyle’s parents have nearly 50 years of healthcare experience. We deal with the inter-workings of healthcare and health failure on a daily basis. We are both passionate healthcare professionals and incurable patient advocates. But we feel the selective information and greed that has controlled our industry for decades must be met head on. Does healthcare need reform? Lord knows, yes! But we cannot solve the problem with the same tactics and players we’ve used to create it.
We all must make a fair and reasonable profit on our goods and services in order to continue to help people, but I believe, just like their kissin’ cousins Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac… Pfizer Mae and Freddie Merck need a shorter leash.
Mine is only one opinion. Please share yours.
Michele
Pharmaceutical Reform Head-On Collision with PhRMA Lobby
USA Today. Drugmakers go furthest to sway Congress.
US News and World Report – Rick Newman - September 25, 2009
Prescribing under the influence – Markkula Center for Applied Ethics
US News and World Report - September 15, 2009
www.mercola.com
www.opensecrets.org
What is the status quo of healthcare in the United States? We have by far the most expensive health care system in the world. So we get what we pay for, right? The statistics do not show this value. The U.S. now ranks last out of 19 countries for unnecessary death – deaths that could have been avoided through timely and effective medical care. Chronic debilitating disease kept one in six working-age adults (18 percent) out of the work place in 2006. The annual healthcare spending per person in the U.S. is double that of our like countrymen, yet we rank ourselves next to last in percent perceived value.
In regard to these statistics, why are we not more focused on the reason care is so expensive? Why efficacy is so poor? Why perceived value is so low? Instead, our Congress is about to pass a healthcare “reform” bill that reforms nothing but the way in which a broken system is paid. Wow.
How do they say this $856 billion proposal will be paid for? U.S. News and World Report published an article the end of September stating most of it will come from taxes on some high-cost insurance plans, Medicare cost reductions, and cuts in federal benefits. They also target three industries from which they will collect fees to the tune of $13 billion: pharmaceuticals, health insurance, and medical devices. I’m thinking so far so good. This is what the breakout looks like.
U.S. based pharmaceuticals brought in $44 billion and will be asked to pay $2.3 billion in annual fees. This represents about 5.2 percent of their industry profits. Health insurers brought in $11.3 billion and will be asked to pay $6.7 billion in fees resulting in 59 percent of their annual profits. And the medical device industry, who earned about $5.1 billion over the last year, is being asked to pony up $4 billion in fees an enormous 78 percent of their profits. Ouch. It is easy to see the pharmaceutical companies are the Big Winners. No wonder they are endorsing this bill after spending an average of $160 million a year to block other reform efforts.
The trade organization for the global pharmaceutical companies is called PhRMA. The recent deal struck between PhRMA and the White House and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus reveals a slightly different scenario. This plan calls for an $80 billion contribution to be paid out over the next ten years, yet th
Let’s stick with the number game for a moment. PhRMA spends about $200 million per year lobbying their interests on Capitol Hill. They spend $7 billion per year on gifts for doctors. Of course these doctors will say that nothing sways their professional judgment, but ethics studies tell us differently. PhRMA spends $30 billion (yes, billion) per year in the U.S. on direct marketing and advertising. This direct-to-consumer practice was actually prohibited until 1986 because, of course, controlled substances should be dealt with differently than the best cheeseburger or hair gel.
In my last post, I referenced the book “Blink” and the idea of rapid cognition, the powerful workings of our mind below the conscious level. So what does this have to do with healthcare and the major issues we face? I believe a great deal. These slick direct marketing tactics do “sell” you a drug, a vaccine, a treatment, a procedure, a power wheelchair, and a state of mind. The way you and your doctor thin-slice reality becomes a lot more disease management than health care, and if it did not work, PhRMA would not continue to spend $30 billion dollars a year on it. Some sources report this staggering amount is more than twice what they spend per year on research, development, and manufacturing of their drugs.
Astonishing.
The advancement in pharmaceuticals is a critical part of the modern care of individuals. They can save lives… They helped save my dad’s life. The problem is they have controlled the healthcare industry in the U.S. for years and many alternative therapies which also save lives are not paid for because there is no profit in it for the individuals with deep enough pockets to fund mass studies. Over 2/3 of all scientific studies performed on medications are now funded directly by the pharmaceutical industry, and most of the physician information is derived directly from their drug representatives. Complete and unbiased information becomes increasingly difficult to access. We need to put free-thinking, innovative, and holistic healthcare professionals back in charge of the healthcare system rather than the stock holders and profits of PhRMA.
The concern should not be the presence of a government public option for healthcare. I believe all Americans should have the security of coverage, and I am grateful for our country’s desire to see this as vitally important. The issue is that under the current “reform” bill government run healthcare is PhRMA run healthcare, and I do not trust this is the system we want for the long term welfare of our children or their nation.
Am I biased? You bet your bloomers I am. Collectively Kyle’s parents have nearly 50 years of healthcare experience. We deal with the inter-workings of healthcare and health failure on a daily basis. We are both passionate healthcare professionals and incurable patient advocates. But we feel the selective information and greed that has controlled our industry for decades must be met head on. Does healthcare need reform? Lord knows, yes! But we cannot solve the problem with the same tactics and players we’ve used to create it.
We all must make a fair and reasonable profit on our goods and services in order to continue to help people, but I believe, just like their kissin’ cousins Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac… Pfizer Mae and Freddie Merck need a shorter leash.
Mine is only one opinion. Please share yours.
Michele
Pharmaceutical Reform Head-On Collision with PhRMA Lobby
USA Today. Drugmakers go furthest to sway Congress.
US News and World Report – Rick Newman - September 25, 2009
Prescribing under the influence – Markkula Center for Applied Ethics
US News and World Report - September 15, 2009
www.mercola.com
www.opensecrets.org
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