A Prescription for 2008

Whoever becomes our 44th president will have to put health reform right at the top of his-or her-agenda. The question is not whether there will be reform-the question is what direction it will take.</p>Already now in early 2007 we can see the contours of two very distinctly different ideas of how to reform our health care system.</p>On the Democratic side Senators Clinton and Obama and former senator John Edwards are all in favor of national single payer health insurance.</p>On the Republican side Governor Mitt Romney has a strong record of health reform. He was instrumental in putting together an interesting market-based health reform in Massachusetts. Is his model strong enough to be a credible alternative to a universal single payer system?</p>This book discusses the two main alternatives and points to weaknesses in the single payer model: very high taxes unacceptable waiting lists inefficiencies and the often overlooked ethical problems with government-run health care. Unless the Democrats can show how they want to overcome these problems voters should look for other solutions.</p>At the same time this book also recognizes that the best alternative-the Romney model-is far from perfect. It is filled with bureaucratic stumbling blocks and its costs to taxpayers are underestimated.</p>This book suggests how some key reforms to the Romney model can make it a credible platform for fixing our nation's health care system.</p>