The core issue behind healthcare reform is really “entitlement reform,” according to Boston University professor Laurence Kotlikoff, who believes the country needs to start from scratch with healthcare reform, according to an interview with Yahoo Finance.
The economics professor said Obamacare is not a solution, since it is “set up in a way that can be tremendously expensive,” according to the report. Prof. Kotlikoff also said the President has done little to stop the “explosions of costs in Medicare and Medicaid.”
Prof. Kotlikoff also said the core problem in Washington is that both parties lack the political will to deal with entitlement reform. He recommends a Medical Security System, where each American would receive an annual voucher equal to the person’s expected healthcare costs. These costs would be based on health indicators reported through electronic medical records. The vouchers would be used to buy the basic plan from health insurance companies, which would be left with little incentive to cherry pick.
“Once the vouchers are handed out, Uncle Sam is off the hook,” says Prof. Kotklikoff in his book, Jimmy Stewart is Dead. “The insurance industry and doctors, hospitals, and other private providers will be responsible for providing the Basic Plan based on the vouchers provided.”
Read the Yahoo report on Laurence Kotlikoff and healthcare reform.
Read more analyses of healthcare reform:
– Five Reform Provisions Targeted for Defunding
– Obama Administration Opposes Pushing Reform Cases to Supreme Court
