The President recently invited Republicans to talk with him about health care so I thought this might be a great opportunity to put some real solutions based on good fiscally conservative values into play. Although I know the vast majority of Americans are satisfied with their health care, and do not consider this another “crisis”, I realize there are areas that need improvement. My skeptical side has doubts about whether this will be a real discussion in front of all the cameras. It may just be an attempt at humiliating Republicans to reinforce the mantra that all conservatives say is “no” and that there are no good ideas from the right. We’ll see. President Obama and his supporters like Congressman David Wu have had nothing to do with being bi-partisan up to this point, holding closed door sessions, making sweet heart deals to unions, and creating earmarks for various democrat politicians in order to buy their votes on health care. They haven’t needed to reach out to Republicans because, with their super majority, there was nothing Republicans could do to stop any bill from being passed in the last year anyway. They didn’t need Republican votes. So, why start inviting Republicans to a meeting now? The first televised meeting.

My gut feeling on this is the American people want no part of either of these proposed partisan democrat healthcare plans. You are actually seeing bi-partisan support for killing these bills. Republicans can’t kill these bills on their own without the support of some democrats. The President and his supporters, like Congressman David Wu, need to abandon their big government solutions and adopt solutions that put power in the hands of individuals and free markets. I like the Republican letter in reply to the President’s overtures; it gives me hope that our party actually has a spine. I hope this letter marks a turning point for Republicans. Here is a link to it; see what you think.

I choose to be optimistic and maybe we can make progress. Personally, I would like to know the President’s plan if he has one. We know what the House Democrats want and we know what the Senate Democrats want, but what is the President’s plan? I’d like to see that.

In that light, I do have some ideas and have found some viable solutions. As with any issue, I look at it with the basic underlying assumption that competition leads to innovation, efficiency, and a pursuit of excellence. So, if I can do something to increase competition in the market place, I believe that is a good start.

Here are some of my healthcare concerns:
- Costs are climbing.
- Individuals and employees at small companies don’t have access to more affordable plans like large employers do.
- Doctor’s malpractice insurance rates are climbing, at times putting doctors out of business.
- People can lose their healthcare coverage between jobs.
- Not everyone has access to an affordable plan.

Solutions:
My first thoughts on this subject were; how come health care insurance can’t be more like automobile insurance? As a consumer, I have a choice between a myriad of companies competing against each other for my business. I have the ability to choose a plan and deductable level that is right for me. I don’t lose my car insurance if I lose my job. I can keep the same insurance company when I move from state to state, even though the states require different minimum levels of coverage. If I want, I can pay for towing coverage or there are even plans that will pay for unexpected maintenance. On the other hand, I can choose a plan that is more affordable but doesn’t have all the expensive bells and whistles. Automobile insurance companies strive to provide the service that I demand and if one company falls short, I can take my business elsewhere.

I thought, why can’t health insurance work like that? So, I started doing a little research and found that a road map already exists and is being pursued in Congress by Representative Paul Ryan from Wisconsin. Here are the major bullet points of his plan that I would support. (I also like the other parts of his plan as they fall in line with my feelings about less government and more control to individuals.)

“The plan ensures universal access to affordable health insurance by restructuring the tax code, allowing all Americans to secure affordable health plans that best suit their needs, and shifting the ownership of health coverage away from the government and employers to individuals.
• Provides a refundable tax credit – $2,300 for individuals and $5,700 for families – to purchase coverage in any State, and keep it with them if they move or change jobs.
• Provides transparency in health care price and quality data, making this critical information readily available before someone needs health services.
• Creates state-based health care exchanges, so individuals and families have a one-stop marketplace to purchase affordable health insurance without being discriminated against based on pre-existing conditions.
• Equips states with tools like auto-enrollment programs and high-risk pools, so affordable health coverage can be accessed by all.
• Addresses health care’s growing strain on small businesses, by allowing them to pool together nationally to offer coverage to their employees.
• Encourages the adoption of health information technology and assists states in establishing solutions to medical malpractice litigation.”

Go to his web site to see more detail. I think this is a great start to addressing the concerns and I would be excited to jump in and band together to move a plan like this forward. I like what I see in the rest of this “road map” because for every issue there is a solution which puts power into the hands of individuals.

The role of government in this process is the critical issue to me. I keep using the playing field analogy and it seems to fit. We want the government to be the referee who maintains the security and the rule of law while providing all the players the same opportunities. I am against that referee favoring one team over another (e.g. GM over Toyota) or actually playing in the game. The ref should not be playing or doing things that set up a conflict of interest. In health care this means keep the government out of it except to ensure the rules are followed and all the players have the same opportunity to succeed.

I’m excited to see what will come of this televised discussion with the President and see if he is open to free market solutions instead of relying on expanding government control. We will see. Viable solutions are out there, and I hope Congressman Ryan has the opportunity to present his in the next weeks.

Perhaps the President will become a fiscal conservative and Join the Resistance to bigger government and higher taxes too. It’s not too late for the real change people hoped for. Then again, if the President isn’t willing to scrap the existing plans from the House and Senate, which are based on big government control of the industry complete with pork…what’s the point?. Sometimes just saying no is the right thing to do.

Join the Resistance.