I thought this thread would be a good place to give credit to politicians who do something in the best interests of their constituents.
This happened in Tennessee last night when Governor Bredesen gave a clearly communicated, practical speech addressing the woes of our state health system TennCare that has been in existence for ten years but is threatening to consume all new revenues generated by the state for the foreseeable future.
This has been an issue that our state has been wrestling with unsuccessfully for the five years I have been a resident.
Governor Bredesen's speech last night addressed reducing benefits while leaving a large number of beneficiaries on the system. He proposed using copays and limiting the number of hospital days and prescriptions a patient could receive per year or month.
He also kept a vision alive of using the system to become a model of efficient health care for the entire country. My wife, not a political creature, watched the entire speech and was won over completely by it. (I was convinced by the fact that she watched the entire speech)
This proposal is not an election year gimmick, but it is just a speech and it has to get passed by the legislature. It is the result of a careful study conducted by an independent firm that was hired to assess the entire system. Several common sense elements are in the solution proposed by the governor, and he explained his targets by giving clear numbers on the growth of spending in TennCare and where the spending would have to be stopped.
It is a difficult thing for a politician to advocate cuts in services. He laid out a detailed plan and showed how it would work.
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The ''last chance'' overhaul is expected to stem the program's out-of-control growth, he said, saving $2.5 billion over four years while continuing to provide services to the 1.3 million people who are poor, disabled or otherwise not able to get insurance.
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On average, TennCare enrollees are getting 30 prescriptions a year, compared to a national average of 10.5, a statistic that drew gasps from lawmakers last night.
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The total cost of TennCare's pharmacy program outpaces that of the state's entire higher education system, the governor said.
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TennCare will no longer pay $5.47 per pill of Zyprexa, which treats schizophrenia, but instead will buy a 33-cent alternative that is equally effective, Bredesen said.
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TennCare also would no longer cover antihistamines, such as prescription Claritin, and gastric-acid reducers, like Nexium, except in rare cases, because effective remedies are available over the counter, he said.
Those two drug categories are about 12% of TennCare's pharmacy spending. That 12% equals $280 million in state and federal funds.
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• TennCare has had eight directors in 10 years.
Governor proposes limits to save TennCareTo me this is the combination of fiscal conservatism and provision of basic social welfare benefits that represents both sides of our political aisle at their finest.