HillaryCare in Tennessee

[KD in CA]

HillaryCare in Tennessee

 

The disaster that might have been for the entire country.

 

Monday, December 6, 2004 12:01 a.m. EST

 

We think it was Justice Brandeis who said the states should be laboratories for reform. Regarding health care, Tennessee tried a decade ago and the price is now coming due. Hillary Rodham Clinton should call her pollster if she plans on carrying the state in 2008.

 

In 1994, Tennessee passed what was then a very hot New Democrat idea--call it government managed care--a version of the reform the former first lady was also pitching nationwide. TennCare promised the impossible dream of politicians everywhere: Lower health-care costs while covering more of the "uninsured." They got the impossible, all right. After 10 years of mismanagement and lawsuits, TennCare now eats up one-third of the state's entire budget and is growing fast. Governor Phil Bredesen, a Democrat, is preparing to pull the plug and return the state to the less lunatic subsidies of Medicaid.

 

The TennCare concept was for the state to operate like an HMO, providing health insurance to those who needed it and paying the premiums for those who couldn't afford it. The idea was even sold as a cost savings because it would provide "managed care" (volume discounts, preventative care, etc.). TennCare opened enrollment to hundreds of thousands of people who did not qualify for Medicaid, even to some six-figure earners. Costs quickly exploded, and despite attempts to tighten eligibility rules the program still covers 1.3 million of the state's 5.8 million people.

The skyrocketing costs led previous Governor Don Sundquist, the Republican who had inherited the program, to try to impose a state income tax. His efforts failed, fortunately, but in 2002 Mr. Bredesen was elected promising to cut TennCare's costs.

 

That, too, has been impossible. Left-wing legal activists have sued the state with impunity to underwrite the cost of nearly unlimited care. A Nashville non-profit called the Tennessee Justice Center has hamstrung reforms for years by suing to enforce a series of consent decrees, some of which predate TennCare.

 

Prescription drug costs alone increased 23% last year, as there are effectively no limits on the number or types of drugs the system will pay for. If a doctor prescribes aspirin, TennCare pays for it. Ditto for antacids for heartburn and other over-the-counter products. If TennCare denies a claim for a drug or any other type of care, an appeal can be filed for next to nothing. Fighting each appeal costs the state as much as $1,600 in legal fees. With 10,000 appeals filed every month, it's often easier and cheaper to pay a claim, regardless of the merits.

 

TennCare is now in worse shape than it was a decade ago. Three of the 11 privately run Managed Care Organizations that insured TennCare patients and administered the program have fallen into receivership. Amid the legal wrangling, Blue Cross Blue Shield all but pulled out of the program. Today the state has assumed all the insurance risk and pays most of the premiums.

 

Mr. Bredesen has proposed numerous reforms to reduce costs by limiting care, and the legislature overwhelmingly endorsed them earlier this year. But they sit in limbo while the Governor negotiates with the Tennessee Justice Center to end its lawsuits. With the talks at an impasse, Mr. Bredesen has instructed state officials to start thinking about dismantling TennCare. "It makes no sense for one facet of our responsibilities--health care--to be able to come to the table first and eat and drink all it wants, and then if there is anything left over, we then can consider our other responsibilities," he told the Tennessee School Board Association recently.

Good for Mr. Bredesen for recognizing that the entitlement mentality inevitably leads to fiscal perdition. Has he told Mrs. Clinton, not to mention certain Republicans in Washington?

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

HillaryCare in Tennessee

 

The disaster that might have been for the entire country.

 

Monday, December 6, 2004 12:01 a.m. EST

 

We think it was Justice Brandeis who said the states should be laboratories for reform. Regarding health care, Tennessee tried a decade ago and the price is now coming due. Hillary Rodham Clinton should call her pollster if she plans on carrying the state in 2008.

 

In 1994, Tennessee passed what was then a very hot New Democrat idea--call it government managed care--a version of the reform the former first lady was also pitching nationwide. TennCare promised the impossible dream of politicians everywhere: Lower health-care costs while covering more of the "uninsured." They got the impossible, all right. After 10 years of mismanagement and lawsuits, TennCare now eats up one-third of the state's entire budget and is growing fast. Governor Phil Bredesen, a Democrat, is preparing to pull the plug and return the state to the less lunatic subsidies of Medicaid.

 

The TennCare concept was for the state to operate like an HMO, providing health insurance to those who needed it and paying the premiums for those who couldn't afford it. The idea was even sold as a cost savings because it would provide "managed care" (volume discounts, preventative care, etc.). TennCare opened enrollment to hundreds of thousands of people who did not qualify for Medicaid, even to some six-figure earners. Costs quickly exploded, and despite attempts to tighten eligibility rules the program still covers 1.3 million of the state's 5.8 million people.

The skyrocketing costs led previous Governor Don Sundquist, the Republican who had inherited the program, to try to impose a state income tax. His efforts failed, fortunately, but in 2002 Mr. Bredesen was elected promising to cut TennCare's costs.

 

That, too, has been impossible. Left-wing legal activists have sued the state with impunity to underwrite the cost of nearly unlimited care. A Nashville non-profit called the Tennessee Justice Center has hamstrung reforms for years by suing to enforce a series of consent decrees, some of which predate TennCare.

 

Prescription drug costs alone increased 23% last year, as there are effectively no limits on the number or types of drugs the system will pay for. If a doctor prescribes aspirin, TennCare pays for it. Ditto for antacids for heartburn and other over-the-counter products. If TennCare denies a claim for a drug or any other type of care, an appeal can be filed for next to nothing. Fighting each appeal costs the state as much as $1,600 in legal fees. With 10,000 appeals filed every month, it's often easier and cheaper to pay a claim, regardless of the merits.

 

TennCare is now in worse shape than it was a decade ago. Three of the 11 privately run Managed Care Organizations that insured TennCare patients and administered the program have fallen into receivership. Amid the legal wrangling, Blue Cross Blue Shield all but pulled out of the program. Today the state has assumed all the insurance risk and pays most of the premiums.

 

Mr. Bredesen has proposed numerous reforms to reduce costs by limiting care, and the legislature overwhelmingly endorsed them earlier this year. But they sit in limbo while the Governor negotiates with the Tennessee Justice Center to end its lawsuits. With the talks at an impasse, Mr. Bredesen has instructed state officials to start thinking about dismantling TennCare. "It makes no sense for one facet of our responsibilities--health care--to be able to come to the table first and eat and drink all it wants, and then if there is anything left over, we then can consider our other responsibilities," he told the Tennessee School Board Association recently.

Good for Mr. Bredesen for recognizing that the entitlement mentality inevitably leads to fiscal perdition. Has he told Mrs. Clinton, not to mention certain Republicans in Washington?

149055[/snapback]

 

 

Well there's a suprise. A socialist programfailed miserably.

[Gavin in Va Beach]

Well there's a suprise. A socialist programfailed miserably.

149079[/snapback]

 

Oh don't be that way Joe, it just wasn't run by the right people. Why I'm sure that somebody else could make it succeed...

 

 

[_BiB_]

I have to wonder if that impacted Algore.

[erynthered]

HillaryCare in Tennessee

 

The disaster that might have been for the entire country.

 

Monday, December 6, 2004 12:01 a.m. EST

 

We think it was Justice Brandeis who said the states should be laboratories for reform. Regarding health care, Tennessee tried a decade ago and the price is now coming due. Hillary Rodham Clinton should call her pollster if she plans on carrying the state in 2008.

 

In 1994, Tennessee passed what was then a very hot New Democrat idea--call it government managed care--a version of the reform the former first lady was also pitching nationwide. TennCare promised the impossible dream of politicians everywhere: Lower health-care costs while covering more of the "uninsured." They got the impossible, all right. After 10 years of mismanagement and lawsuits, TennCare now eats up one-third of the state's entire budget and is growing fast. Governor Phil Bredesen, a Democrat, is preparing to pull the plug and return the state to the less lunatic subsidies of Medicaid.

 

The TennCare concept was for the state to operate like an HMO, providing health insurance to those who needed it and paying the premiums for those who couldn't afford it. The idea was even sold as a cost savings because it would provide "managed care" (volume discounts, preventative care, etc.). TennCare opened enrollment to hundreds of thousands of people who did not qualify for Medicaid, even to some six-figure earners. Costs quickly exploded, and despite attempts to tighten eligibility rules the program still covers 1.3 million of the state's 5.8 million people.

The skyrocketing costs led previous Governor Don Sundquist, the Republican who had inherited the program, to try to impose a state income tax. His efforts failed, fortunately, but in 2002 Mr. Bredesen was elected promising to cut TennCare's costs.

 

That, too, has been impossible. Left-wing legal activists have sued the state with impunity to underwrite the cost of nearly unlimited care. A Nashville non-profit called the Tennessee Justice Center has hamstrung reforms for years by suing to enforce a series of consent decrees, some of which predate TennCare.

 

Prescription drug costs alone increased 23% last year, as there are effectively no limits on the number or types of drugs the system will pay for. If a doctor prescribes aspirin, TennCare pays for it. Ditto for antacids for heartburn and other over-the-counter products. If TennCare denies a claim for a drug or any other type of care, an appeal can be filed for next to nothing. Fighting each appeal costs the state as much as $1,600 in legal fees. With 10,000 appeals filed every month, it's often easier and cheaper to pay a claim, regardless of the merits.

 

TennCare is now in worse shape than it was a decade ago. Three of the 11 privately run Managed Care Organizations that insured TennCare patients and administered the program have fallen into receivership. Amid the legal wrangling, Blue Cross Blue Shield all but pulled out of the program. Today the state has assumed all the insurance risk and pays most of the premiums.

 

Mr. Bredesen has proposed numerous reforms to reduce costs by limiting care, and the legislature overwhelmingly endorsed them earlier this year. But they sit in limbo while the Governor negotiates with the Tennessee Justice Center to end its lawsuits. With the talks at an impasse, Mr. Bredesen has instructed state officials to start thinking about dismantling TennCare. "It makes no sense for one facet of our responsibilities--health care--to be able to come to the table first and eat and drink all it wants, and then if there is anything left over, we then can consider our other responsibilities," he told the Tennessee School Board Association recently.

Good for Mr. Bredesen for recognizing that the entitlement mentality inevitably leads to fiscal perdition. Has he told Mrs. Clinton, not to mention certain Republicans in Washington?

149055[/snapback]

 

 

 

Maybe Miz clinton will move to Tenn, and fix the problem. Its a thought.

[Alaska Darin]

Anybody who doesn't have health care ought to enlist.

[swede316]

Maybe Miz clinton will move to Tenn, and fix the problem. Its a thought.

One can dream...If only this dream could would come true.

[/dev/null]

hillarycare = rj

[SilverNRed]

Well there's a suprise. A socialist programfailed miserably.

149079[/snapback]

 

So? Just because socialism has never worked even once in the entire history of mankind, that doesn't mean it's a bad idea.

 

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go try to crap out a brick of gold. It's never happened before, but hey it's worth a shot.

[/dev/null]

So?  Just because socialism has never worked even once in the entire history of mankind, that doesn't mean it's a bad idea.

 

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go try to crap out a brick of gold.  It's never happened before, but hey it's worth a shot.

151257[/snapback]

 

good luck with the gold kicking. if it doesn't work, blame capitalists for overvaluing gold and try kicking from a different angle. if that still doesn't work, you know those capitalists are crafty bunch! so kick it from a different angle until you either succeed or there is no gold left

[Thurman's Helmet]

Its either Bush's fault or Halliburton's.

[/dev/null]

Its either Bush's fault or Halliburton's.

151312[/snapback]

 

Flightsuit!!!

[KD in CA]

Wow...not a single Dem on a thread invoking the name of their front runner for 2008? I was hoping for tenny's views on this subject....it's his state after all.

[Alaska Darin]

Wow...not a single Dem on a thread invoking the name of their front runner for 2008?  I was hoping for tenny's views on this subject....it's his state after all.

152521[/snapback]

Yeah, I'm a little shocked not to hear the "just because it's ridiculously expensive doesn't mean it's not helping a percentage of people" argument that's just so darn refreshing.

[nobody]

Not that medicare and medicaid are any better programs at saving taxpayers money. Sure, they might save a state money but all that means is that the state passes on the costs to the counties and cities.

 

Scrap it all!

[ExiledInIllinois]

Anybody who doesn't have health care ought to enlist.

149338[/snapback]

 

Yah... And you still won't get it there! Just wait till they slash the budget on the returning vets... Name me one time in history they didn't.

 

I totally agree with your statement. You enlist and serve honorably, you should get health care for life... reduced for immediate family.