These days as you launch your browser, turn on the TV, or pick up a newspaper you are drawn to the national discussion of healthcare in America. In fact, this week the Supreme Court of the United States will hear arguments on whether the Healthcare Reform Act passed by Congress in 2010 is legally binding. Two cases will be argued next week. One case is regarding individual healthcare coverage.
The other case has to do with how allocated healthcare federal funds will be distributed in the state. Both the above explanations are simplifications of a very complex set of arguments. For a very good (and more detailed) explanation, please refer to “A Guide to the Supreme Court’s Review of the 2010 Health Care Reform Law,” Focus on Healthcare, January 2012, Kaiser Family Foundation.
We have all heard about the alarming rate of Healthcare costs in the United States. For example, from 2000 to 2008, the U.S. economy grew by $4.4 trillion; of that growth, roughly one out of every four dollars was spent on health care (that’s $1.1 trillion dollars). These debates are a central focus of efforts around Accountable Care, for example. Household expenditures on health care already exceed those on housing. And healthcare’s share is growing. We know this is taking dollars that could be used for other national benefits (schools, roads, law enforcement, etc.) but this is “healthcare” and we all want better health, right?
Both sides of the healthcare reform debate have very compelling arguments. We are going to watch history being made, just as those who watched L.B. Johnson sign the laws about Medicare/Medicaid that were then argued in the Supreme Court. We all will watch with keen interest as these stories unfold.
