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BCBSTX Responds to President Obama's Address on Health Care Reform
Following the President's Address to Congress last night concerning health care reform, you may have some questions about how the key measures he discussed compare to those supported by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas.
BCBSTX shares President Obama's desire to achieve bipartisan health care reform. That is why we joined with other health insurers last year to support guaranteed coverage to all Americans including those with pre-existing medical conditions, coupled with an effective coverage requirement.
Additionally, we were pleased to hear the president say that reform should build on what works in the health care system and fix what doesn't. That has been our position since 2006.
However, we do not agree that a new government-run health plan is necessary to achieve health care reform. In fact, we believe it will have unintended harmful consequences to reform goals.
In addition, we would like to see a greater emphasis on wellness in all the reform proposals. With 75 percent of the health care spending in the United States going to chronic disease treatment, we must pay more attention to the main drivers of these diseases by encouraging all Americans to eat better, exercise more and smoke less.
We also believe there should be greater emphasis on using health information technology to help doctors and hospitals improve the delivery of care, and employers, individuals and government spend their health care dollars more wisely.
Finally, we agree that this historic opportunity to improve our health care system should not be lost. And so we urge the president and members of Congress from both parties to find common ground and move forward on health care reform.