We had a meeting with our rep from one of our most important business partners today: the US Post Office. Cynthia has been a great resource for us over the years. Even though she is retiring in 3 days, she drove out to see us and to have one last meeting to introduce us to our new rep, Carl. So he...
When we talk about sustainability, we're often talking about responsible stewardship of a resource. In the case of sustainable health care, that resource is the ability to provide quality care to all Americans in a timely manner and at a reasonable cost. How does this resource we know as health care become stressed and perhaps unsustainable?
Is the cost of providing health care sustainable? For instance, is it possible for a patient to receive health care services without a residual bill? What if a patient has multiple health problems and sees multiple doctors. Are they able to receive these services and use their insurance coverage to pay for those services?
Transparency in health care is the ability to easily and clearly understand all of the transactions that take place with your health care. One of the most complicating aspects of receiving and providing health care is the intersection of health care coverage and the care itself. To understand what I mean, think about what it takes for you to personally access your primary care doctor.
When you think of health care, what kinds of choices come to mind? You can choose your doctor. You can choose the hospital that you may prefer. But beyond that, what else can you choose? Can you choose the type of insulin that you'll need for you diabetes? That seems a little absurd right? You wouldn't choose your insulin, that's your doctor's choice based on his or her training. Most of us would delegate that choice to someone who is more trained in the field.
