John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods, wrote an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal on August 11, 2009. In it he proposed some ways of reforming health care without instituting big government. Some of his ideas:
- Remove the legal obstacles that slow the creation of high-deductible health insurance plans and health savings accounts (HSAs).
- Equalize the tax laws so that employer-provided health insurance and individually owned health insurance have the same tax benefits.
- Repeal all state laws which prevent insurance companies from competing across state lines.
- Repeal government mandates regarding what insurance companies must cover.
- Enact tort reform to end the ruinous lawsuits that force doctors to pay insurance costs of hundreds of thousands of dollars per year.
- Make costs transparent so that consumers understand what health-care treatments cost.
- Enact Medicare reform.
- Revise tax forms to make it easier for individuals to make a voluntary, tax-deductible donation to help the millions of people who have no insurance and aren't covered by Medicare, Medicaid or the State Children's Health Insurance Program.
I think this is a good start. I don't totally agree with every point but it does address the problems we currently have, does not increase the size of government, and works within the system we have.
You can read the entire op-ed here.
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