The Health Security Partnership. A federal-state universal insurance and cost-containment program
R. Fein
Department of Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.
The Health Security Partnership attempts to assure (1) that all Americans
have insurance coverage for a set of comprehensive health care benefits,
(2) that cost-containment issues are addressed in a manner that does not
impinge negatively on the quality of care, and (3) that provider freedom to
deliver appropriate clinical care is strengthened. It assigns important
responsibilities to the federal government (eg, specification of benefits,
review of proposed state health care budgets), while permitting states to
select, develop, and administer specific program design features they deem
appropriate (eg, states could build on and expand the existing health
system infrastructure, including private insurance, and/or extend the role
of tax-supported programs). It is estimated that in its first year the
program would add about 5% to America's health expenditures, but within a
few years, cost-containment efforts and administrative efficiencies would
reduce overall expenditures below what they otherwise would be.
