ICYMI: Blog: The Path Forward in Health Care: Building on The Strengths of our Current System    

WASHINGTON – In a recent blog, Lauren Crawford Shaver, executive director of the Partnership for America’s Health Care Future, points out that as state and federal lawmakers look for what’s next in health care, the focus should remain building on and improving what’s working in health care, not creating an unaffordable, new government-controlled health insurance system. Crawford Shaver points out that our current system has seen record-high coverage gains over the past 12 years, while government-controlled proposals like the public option remain unaffordable and unproven. 

• “With incredible gains in coverage over the last 12 years, strengthening and building on our health care system – where private coverage, Medicare, and Medicaid work together – has given millions more Americans access to affordable, high-quality health coverage and care.”  

• “In terms of cost and coverage, enhancements to our current health care system in the past year have resulted in tremendous progress on both fronts, with millions more Americans now eligible for affordable, high-quality health insurance. And even prior to passage of additional subsidies, individual markets were showing signs of improvement through lower premiums and increased issuer participation.”  
• “Starting over by creating a new government-controlled health insurance system will be duplicative of current health care law while simultaneously introducing a range of potential costs and consequences.” 

Recent polling shows that voters prefer building on our current health care system rather than starting over by creating an unaffordable, new government-controlled health insurance system. At a time when Americans are depending on access to affordable, high-quality health coverage and care more than ever, we should prioritize building on and improving what’s working in health care, not starting over.