The following resolution was adopted by the House of Delegates of the Michigan State Medical Society at its meeting on April 27. It was written by Larry R. Junck, M.D., and introduced by Dr. Junck, Fred W. Whitehouse, M.D., and Mildred J. Willy, M.D.
Single-Payer National Health Insurance: MSMS Board Review
Whereas, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has significant limitations including incomplete coverage of the population, complex bureaucracy, individual mandate, and allowable overhead within plans of 15-20 percent, and
Whereas, Medicare receives high satisfaction ratings from patients and, when adequately funded, is a model for an efficient single-payer system with low overhead of 1-3 percent, and
Whereas, nearly all advanced countries have a well-functioning single-payer system that is embraced by their citizens, and
Whereas, a single-payer system has advantages to medical practices including simplicity of billing and administration, and
Whereas, a single-payer system can help American businesses to be more competitive by eliminating their involvement in paying for health care for their employees, and
Whereas, a single-payer system provides the opportunity to improve medical care according to themes of the MSMS Future of Medicine report, including “Universal Coverage,” “Prevention and wellness,” and “Partnering with patients”; therefore be it
RESOLVED: That the MSMS Board of Directors investigate supporting the adoption of a single-payer financing mechanism for health insurance that does not impede the choice of physician or other provider, and that the Board report back to the MSMS House of Delegates in 2015 regarding its investigation.
WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE FISCAL NOTE: $50,000 for a health care consulting firm to research, analyze and write a report.