Principle #3:
Quality: Making the world's best care better.
Emphasizes preventive care. The Health Security plan puts a new
emphasis on preventing illness before it becomes a medical
crisis. Prevention will improve the quality of care by helping
people stay healthy rather than treating them after they get
sick. The benefits package fully pays for a wide range of
preventive services; the vast majority of today's insurance
plans don't cover a penny.
Gives consumers the power to judge the quality of care.
Consumers will receive quality "report cards" that provide
information on the performance of health care plans and patient
satisfaction. These report cards will hold health plans
accountable for meeting high standards. The National Quality
Program will help states share information on health plan
performance.
Reforms malpractice. The President's proposal will limit
lawyers' fees in order to discourage frivolous medical
malpractice lawsuits. It will also encourage patients and
doctors to use alternative forms of dispute resolution before
they end up in court. This will help eliminate the "defensive
medicine" that drives up costs and hurts quality -- doctors
ordering extra tests because they fear lawyers looking over
their shoulders.
Encourages cooperation in rural and urban areas. Rural
residents will have access to the latest technology and
emergency services through telecommunications links set up
between local doctors and advanced networks of specialists and
hospitals. In urban areas, the plan will increase investment in
public hospitals and community health centers.
Provides incentives for more family doctors to practice in
rural and urban areas. The health security plan will give
financial breaks to doctors and nurses who work in underserved
rural and urban areas. It will expand the National Health
Service Corps. Two of three rural counties today do not have
enough doctors and 111 rural counties have no physician at all.
Increases funding for prevention research. The National
Institutes of Health (NIH) will expand research in areas like
children's health, and health and wellness promotion. Preventive
care keeps people healthier and saves money at the same time.
Promotes research on the effectiveness of treatments. Today, a
lack of information about the most cost-effective methods of
treatment often leads to expensive defensive medicine and wide
variation in treatments and costs. The plan's investments in
research into what treatments really work will help improve the
quality of care.
Section of President Clinton's speech covering quality