Any mention of federal health care reform can make even the most stalwart business owner ill at ease. The concern is that regardless of whether the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is repealed, revised or pushed through as planned, employers are going to suffer financially.
A bitter pill, particularly when you don”™t know what is being prescribed or what your dosage will be.
Although the federal health care legislation became law some 18 months ago, the details are still unclear and myriad questions remain unanswered.
That fear of the unknown is disconcerting.
While few would discount the merits of a plan to insure every American, there are legitimate concerns about who is going to foot the trillion-dollar-plus bill. At the same time, few would disagree that the current health care system is on life support.
The question, then, is: Does the Affordable Care Act need to be changed and if so can it be made better and more workable?
“In order to solve a problem, you have to understand it,” said attorney William P. Harrington, chairman of the Westchester County Association”™s Blue Ribbon Task Force on Healthcare Reform.
The panel has scheduled a daylong symposium for Sept. 22 with the goal of addressing health care reform and clearing up the confusion.
“Fundamentally, what we are trying to do is bring to the public both the issues of what”™s really taking place in health care today ”“ i.e., all the changes in the last year or two ”“ and educate the business person with respect to some of the upcoming changes,” Westchester County Association President Bill Mooney explained.
“It”™s a complicated goal because there”™s so many fluid changes here for business owners and employers, but we”™re going to take a real shot at educating the public.”
The symposium, “Health Care Reform: What You”™re Not Hearing in the National Debate,” will be held at the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown. Sessions will cover topics such as what”™s driving health care costs, new models of delivery, how businesses can control costs and advocacy initiatives.
Mooney also described the event as a “launching pad” for  lobbying. “We”™ll get reactions that day and from that we”™ll (focus on) some policy issues that we want to pursue with legislative groups both in Albany and in Washington.”
Amy Allen, the association”™s managing director of advocacy and international business, said the event was timed to coincide with what”™s happening at the federal level.
“Even though the legislation passed, all of the rules and regulations are being written as we speak. (The speakers will) talk to how this stuff will or won”™t be implemented.”
She cited as an example the planned health insurance exchanges, which basically are virtual marketplaces from where individuals can buy insurance.
“A number of these are going to be state-specific, so the more educated we become the better equipped we are to go to our legislators and make recommendations (on what) health care providers and businesses (say) are the best,” Allen said.
Mooney expects the symposium to bring to light provocative subjects and some “revelations.”
“If we could educate the business community or start the process of educating the business community about these issues, it would be great.”
He also mentioned a need to support the Hudson Valley”™s “infrastructure of health care.”
“When you really think about it, the largest economic engine of Westchester County by far, there”™s nothing even close to it, is health care. When you take the hospitals in the region we”™re talking about an $8 billion industry and also a huge taxpayer. People lose sight of that. The payroll tax in the region is over $250 million.
“So, if we can help that infrastructure survive through difficult times and simultaneously educate the business person to the issues and the sense of urgency that we have, that would be a marvelous outcome.
“We”™re pretty excited about this whole thing. It has national prominence. This is probably what the (Obama) administration should have done before they went into what they went into.”
True, but such strategic thinking is usually the domain of the private sector.
