Aligning The Interests Of Uninsured Patients And The Hospitals That Care For Them
Hospitals Try Free Basic Care for Uninsured By Erik Eckholm. New York Times. October 25, 2006
While this article does not deal directly with adherence to treatment, it does describe an excellent example of one of my fundamental themes: aligning the interests of patients (in this case, uninsured patients) and healthcare providers (in this example, the hospitals committed to furnish care for that set of patients).
The Seton Family of Hospitals, when confronted with a repeat visitor whose disorders and healthcare costs might be attenuated if they received help prior to crises, have begun offering free primary care through its charity program.
As the WSJ article notes, “With the number of uninsured people in the United States reaching a record 46.6 million last year, up by 7 million from 2000, Seton is one of a small number of hospital systems around the country to have done the math and acted on it. Officials decided that for many patients with chronic diseases, it would be cheaper to provide free preventive care than to absorb the high cost of repeated emergencies.”
A few other hospitals, including some public systems in New York and Denver now direct uninsured patients to community clinics that charge low fees or provide free care.
While the extent of such programs is severely limited, they appear successful and could serve as a prototypal model for an alternative healthcare system - one organized to reward all participants for cooperation rather than one arranged as a zero-sum game.
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