Sunday, June 28, 1998

Health care tomfoolery

House Republicans have drafted a health-care package, and some of it -- such as increased availability of medical savings accounts -- makes sense. The rest may sound wonderful but isn't. It aims to establish a so-called patients' bill of rights, an idea of the Clinton administration.

Sorry, but this is not intelligent reform. This is expensive tomfoolery.

In today's America, whose consciousness of history sometimes seems to end with last week, it may be easy to forget that not so many years ago the health-care crisis was summed up by two oft-repeated words: soaring costs. One answer was clear. If health insurance plans would further control what they cover, people would pay less. And it happened to be the case, too, that many common health-care practices were not really vital for the maintenance of life and limb, even though people may have gotten used to them.

But the managed-care programs that have brought prices down have also sent many tempers up. Although they presumably liked the smaller hit on their wallets, many people have clearly wanted the same amount of care they used to get. Now, House Republicans are pretending patients can get at least some of that care back -- plus the right to arbitrators and lawsuits when frustrated -- without reversion to the higher costs of yore.

House Republicans should leave regulation of the insurance industry to the states and consider the real reform of tax breaks for individuals on insurance purchases.