Issue #2 Ensuring Quality Care for Medicare Patients

The majority of the policymakers believe that Medicare must be reformed, and reorganized to keep the system running. In 2008, Bush made a proposal to save $70 billion on Medicare within the next 5 years. It seems that drastic cuts will be taken soon, which is why policymakers are attempting to create a solution that will reduce expenditures, but at the same time allow Medicare patients the same quality of services. In 2006, a "pay-for-performance" program went through, and allowed Medicare to pay doctors a 1.5% bonus if they are able to give information on the services they gave their patients, and the quality of it. With enough reports from doctors, medical experts were able to set clinical guidelines for what quality care should be. The reason behing all this is so that legislation wants Medicare to reward excellent doctors, and hospitals for provding exceptional quality for Medicare patients. Most insurance agencies use "after-the-fact, fee-for-service"payment policies. This enforces doctors to submit bills directly to insurance companies and then get reimbursed back with most of the payment. Patients will pay various amounts because their is so many different insurance companies, and sometime they will have to pay $100's of deductibles, but in most plans, patients will pay about 20% of the cost.


I think that the United States needs to switch to a universal healthcare system, so that they don't have to deal with problems or situations like this. I think that problems like these are a waste of time, and their is much bigger issues then how much a doctor, or insurance agency should get paid. If everyone was on the same healthcare plan, things would be much simpler, then everyone would have the same medical fees, and doctors would all be paid accordingly. One politcally powerful person who has the same idea when it comes to healthcare is President Barack Obama. He too, thinks that the universal healthcare would benefit everyone, and cut out a many medical problems today.http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/29/politics/main2863074.shtml
Issue #3
http://noelleushistory.blogspot.com/2010/11/issue-number-3-safe-to-eat.html
Issue #1
http://rachelrachrachel.blogspot.com/2010/11/issue-1-comprehensive-vs-incremental.html