Below is a transcript of the Denver Online Forum, held August 25, 2008 from the Democratic National Convention.
Karen_Ignagni: Hi everyone. I'm Karen Ignagni with America's Health Insurance Plans.
Karen_Ignagni: We are here in Denver for the Democratic National Convention and health care is a big topic.
Karen_Ignagni: People are talking about critical issues such as: how we cover all Americans, portability for people between jobs, making sure Medicare is there for seniors, controlling health care costs, prevention and wellness, and help for people with chronic conditions.
Karen_Ignagni: In addition, connectivity is a hot topic.
Karen_Ignagni: We are pleased to be a part of this discussion.
Karen_Ignagni: We will try and answer as many questions as possible. So let's get started. Please submit questions.
Christina asks: I am wondering whether health insurance companies will cover me, my son, and people like us - who have chronic conditions which require lifetime ongoing medication.
Karen_Ignagni: Everyone deserves coverage - all Americans must have it.
Karen_Ignagni: In particular, people who have chronic illnesses need special attention.
Karen_Ignagni: We have offered a proposal that would address issues that have been identified in various markets - individual market, small business, large business, and public program. We look forward to being a part of the dialogue next year.
Karen_Ignagni: You can view the details of our proposals at www.ahip.org
Jack asks: We would like a universal plan to cover all Americans. Will you put people before profits and make all care equitable for all Americans?
Karen_Ignagni: We agree that we need a universal plan for all Americans and it should draw from the best of the private and public sectors.
Karen_Ignagni: With respect to the profit issue, every hospital, every physician's office and every health plan has to be in the black - not the red - to provide services to patients and consumers.
Eugene asks: What are insurance companies doing to address high costs? I can't afford to pay my prescription drugs.
Karen_Ignagni: We have worked very hard to bring down the rate of increase in drug costs.
Karen_Ignagni: Several years ago, that rate of increase was approaching 20%. We have worked hard to encourage alternatives that emphasize generic drugs and give consumers and their doctors options for coverage on name brand prescriptions.
Karen_Ignagni: In addition, we have pioneered innovative disease management programs to support early intervention and continuity of care.
Karen_Ignagni: Now, drug price trends have significantly declined.
rwv asks: About one-third of pregnant women now have their babies by c-section, but some insurance companies deny coverage to women who have a c-section. What will you do to make sure women won't be denied health insurance because of their pregnancy histories?
Karen_Ignagni: No one can fall through the cracks.
Karen_Ignagni: We need a system that provides continuity of coverage and insures that individuals with high risk get the security they want and need.
Karen_Ignagni: We have proposed a specific strategy to make sure that this is the case and we are looking forward to working with consumer advocates, public officials, physicians to move on this agenda as quickly as possible.
laurafromnewmexico asks: I’m not for a government-run system, but clearly this will take some government help to fix the system, right? Medicaid and SCHIP in particular play a big role in covering some of the poorest Americans. Don’t these programs need to be strengthened if we are going to solve the uninsured problem and what do insurance companies propose to cover more Americans?
Karen_Ignagni: You are right.
Karen_Ignagni: Repairing the safety net for SCHIP and Medicaid should be the building block for health care reform.
Karen_Ignagni: For too long, policy makers have not focused on Medicaid.
Karen_Ignagni: We need to reform the program by doing away with arcane categorical barriers and adopt a simple, straight forward income test for eligibility.
tsindc asks: How can we expect that the insurance industry is serious about reform this time, when it tried to kill reform back in 1993-1994?
Karen_Ignagni: This is a different time.
Karen_Ignagni: Rather than wait for others to propose solutions and react to that, we have worked hard to contribute to the policy dialogue.
Karen_Ignagni: We recognize that all organizations are expected to come to the table, roll up their sleeves and work together.
Karen_Ignagni: We will do exactly that.
jlemond325 asks: How will the health insurance industry make health care more affordable if costs continue to rise with no end in sight?
Karen_Ignagni: Frankly, no one industry can do this alone.
Karen_Ignagni: The reality is that health premiums reflect underlying health care costs.
Karen_Ignagni: The challenge is for the country to commit to a prevention strategy, a disease management strategy, a strategy to reduce the wide variation in care across the country and move to a payment system that rewards high performance.
Karen_Ignagni: We also must as a country commit to an aggressive public health strategy to address obesity which is present as a major driver of so many chronic illnesses. Our country needs to take this issue on in the way that it took on smoking.
Karen_Ignagni: Finally, unlike other countries, we have no place where the effectiveness of drugs, devices and bios are comparatively assessed. To bend the cost curve, we need to create an entity that will accomplish that and implement all of the previous objectives.
Aman asks: Why doesn't the health care industry do something about all the medical lawsuits?
Karen_Ignagni: This is a major problem and unfortunately, there has not been an appetite at the federal level to address it. Here is why that is a problem.
Karen_Ignagni: If we want to move to a system of "best practice" then the risk of malpractice hangs over physicians.
Karen_Ignagni: To avoid lawsuits, physicians find they must do everything possible vs. what the scientific literature would suggest. To achieve a high quality system, we need to address malpractice and do it in a way that patients feel protected and physicians are no longer at risk.
George asks: Why are insurance companies working with Democrats when all they want is socialized health care?
Karen_Ignagni: Democrats here in Denver are talking about how to provide coverage to all Americans.
Karen_Ignagni: There is no one size fits all solution. What we hear from people on the ground here is a strong interest in blending public and private approaches that can work, achieve the goal and be enacted.
Karen_Ignagni: Neither party's platform is calling for single payer. At the same time, we recognize that our industry must demonstrate how we can be problem solvers.
barbT asks: In other countries, a national health care system and an insurance system co-exist. Wouldn't that be a possible solution in this country? That way no one is left out and people can choose to purchase insurance.
Karen_Ignagni: No one can be left out.
Karen_Ignagni: In fact, we do have a blend of public and private already in this country. In Europe and other industrial countries, our members are being called upon to bring the tools they have developed here to improve quality and contain cost.
Karen_Ignagni: The policy challenge next year will be to develop an approach that draws from the best of both sides - public and private.
moderator1: We've reached our time limit.
Karen_Ignagni: Let’s take one more question.
Jason_from_DC asks: Does that mean you support denying coverage for those who can't pay?
Karen_Ignagni: No!
Karen_Ignagni: We have proposed a very comprehensive system of refundable tax credits for working families on a sliding scale with incomes up to 400% of the federal poverty level.
Karen_Ignagni: One of the fundamental jobs of government is to provide a helping hand for working families in addition to repairing the safety net.
Karen_Ignagni: Thank you to all that asked questions and we look forward to continuing this discussion in the near future.
moderator1: A full transcript of this chat will be posted soon. Thank you.
moderator1: We received more than 800 questions. Thank you all.
