News in brief - Aug. 14, 2000

Health care issues weigh heavily on voters' minds

Although health care was identified as a major voter concern in a poll conducted by the Washington Post, the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard University, no specific health issue emerged as a clear favorite.

Of the 1,183 registered voters interviewed, 614 said health care or Medicare was an important issue in deciding their presidential vote. Health care and Medicare surpassed the economy, crime, jobs, the budget and education on voters' list of priorities, according to the poll.

Among health issues, equal numbers of voters identified as a top concern patients' rights, the cost of prescription drugs for the elderly and coverage for the uninsured.

Although 70% of those polled said the federal government should work to reduce the number of uninsured, only 38% were willing to pay higher taxes to do so and 58% opposed a universal, government-provided health plan similar to those in Canada and Britain.

Of the voters interviewed, 68% said they thought the government should help provide a prescription drug benefit for senior citizens, with 57% favoring the Clinton-Gore plan to provide prescription drug coverage through Medicare and 36% supporting the Bush plan to provide coverage through private insurers.

Seniors' prescription drug bills will more than double in the next 10 years, according to a new report from the consumer group Families USA.

"Only by creating a drug benefit in Medicare can we guarantee needed prescription drug coverage and take advantage of Medicare's market clout to keep drugs affordable," said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA.

About 18.4 million people -- or nearly half of all Medicare beneficiaries -- do not have year-round prescription drug insurance coverage, according to the report.

The study found that seniors' spending on drugs will have risen 116% between 1992 and 2000 -- from $559 to an estimated $1,205. By 2010, annual spending is projected to reach $2,810, a 133% increase from 2000 and a 403% jump from 1992.

The average cost per prescription will have risen from $28.50 in 1992 to $42.30 in 2000, a 48% increase.

Sen. Paul Wellstone (D, Minn.) introduced legislation last month that would provide federal funds to help states follow their own routes toward universal health care.

An early proponent of a single-payer health insurance system, Wellstone has now turned to a decentralized plan. "Our plan tells states and governors to choose their way to universal coverage, and then backs up that promise with the federal support necessary to get them there," he said.

Wellstone's Health Security for All Americans Act requires that health plans offer a minimum benefit package equal to the benefits offered under the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program. It also incorporates the patient protection provisions of the House-passed patients' bill of rights.

Several House lawmakers have introduced legislation that would fund programs designed to reduce the stigma of mental illness, prevent suicides and improve treatment for mental disorders.

The measure would direct the federal government to develop a public education campaign to promote its goals. It also calls for millions in federal grants to states to fund programs to train teachers to identify symptoms of mental illness and make referrals, and to teach emergency services personnel to appropriately respond to those with mental illnesses.

The bill would provide state grants to designate hospitals and clinics as "emergency mental health centers," to serve as receiving points for individuals in dire need of services. The bill also would launch a demonstration project to divert mentally ill people from the criminal justice system to community-based services.