Fact or Fiction - The Role of Governtment in Health Care

by John Iglehart

The traditional summer break that provides members of Congress a respite from their official duties instead, in some areas, turned into a raucous, sometimes angry series of town hall meetings focused on the ambitious health care reform proposals of Democrats. The meetings have given reform opponents and advocates an opportunity to voice their opinions, although some of their exchanges have shed more heat than light on the issues, placing legislators in uncomfortable positions. Nevertheless, their impact has reverberated throughout the country because of extensive media coverage transmitted by television, newspapers, and countless bloggers. Much of the dialogue — which has often been contentious — has focused on whether the Democratic plans would transform health care into a government-controlled enterprise and, if so, what its implications might be.

To focus attention on the role of government should a reform plan become law — as well as the potential impact of slowing Medicare spending growth and proposed new Medicare reimbursements for advance-care planning — Health Affairs sponsored a briefing on August 20 at the National Press Club, titled “Fact vs. Fiction: Key Issues in Health Reform.”
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