With the presidential election looming there is a great deal of buzz about what a new administration will bring. Among those of us who are wrapped up in the issues of healthcare reform, there is a palpable level of energy in the air. You hear around town: "This is our time. We have a window that will stay open only for a few years. We must be ready to propose solutions right after the election."
I am hopeful that true healthcare reform will happen, but what does that mean? Different things to different constituency groups for sure. And that's the problem. Everyone looks at the issue through their particular lens. The different disease groups see healthcare reform as it relates to a particular diagnosis: cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, mental illness, etc. Disability advocates, have their own set of issues. Family doctors see it differently than specialty docs do, and hospitals and insurance companies have a different perspective all together.
Everyone wants healthcare reform, but they all want it their way. How do we get beyond these silo wars and come up with an issue that is so fundamental to the care of persons with chronic illnesses or disabilities that everyone will put aside their differences and rally around this one concept that will benefit all?
Is it even possible? I think it is - because we've done it before. The Americans with Disabilities Act is a case in point. This amazing piece of legislation focused on one core concept - access, the ability to function in society on a comparable level to people without disabilities. At its most fundamental level the goals of the ADA affect people with all sorts of disabilities, of all ages and economic groups.
What's the comparable concept for today in the effort to bring about healthcare reform? I have my thoughts - what are yours?
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