Healthy Habits: Healthcare and the American Dream

The broken U.S. healthcare system is stealing the American Dream from all of us. Millennial parents in particular will see half to two-thirds of their lifetime earnings going to healthcare if we don't change the status quo. Already, 50% of millennials avoid seeing the doctor to cut costs.

Fortunately, forward-looking employers, innovative towns, fed up physicians, and millennials are wising up. It's time to stop paying more to get less - "get in, get out” 10-minute appointments, overprescription of addictive opioids, and largely unnecessary or low-evidence procedures. 

I had a chance to interview Dave Chase, author of The CEO’s Guide to Restoring the American Dream and co-founder of Health Rosetta, which promotes reform for the dysfunctional U.S. healthcare system.

What impact does healthcare have on the American Dream?

The broken U.S. healthcare system is stealing the American Dream from all of us, including millennials and young parents. The millennial group in particular will see half to two-thirds of their lifetime earnings going to healthcare if we don't change the status quo. Already, 50% of millennials avoid seeing the doctor to cut costs.

Fortunately, forward-looking employers, innovative towns, fed up physicians, and others are wising up. It's time to stop paying more to get less - "get in, get out” 10-minute appointments, overprescription of addictive opioids, and largely unnecessary or low-evidence procedures.

We can take back our future and get the most for our dollar, and it starts with enacting systemic changes to the way we receive and pay for care.

What are some of the key issues facing health care today?

One of the biggest issues that leads to the opioid crisis and damages the healthcare system is a a badly undermined primary care model. Doctors don’t take the time to get to know patients and are pressured to refer patients to specialists, recommend costly procedures and overprescribe addictive opioids. In fact, a recent study found that nearly 30 percent of opioid prescriptions lacked a medical reason for use. Sometimes, even if a patient refuses a prescription, they will receive one anyhow — it’s just that ingrained in providers’ minds.

Making a shift to value-based primary care would be more effective at prevention and dealing with acute episodes. In a well-functioning value-based primary care practice, 90% of the health issues people enter the health care system for can be handled fully in the primary care setting. Value-based primary care also helps eliminate conflicting prescriptions and care plans, and it limits the number of opioid drugs we put into the hands of American citizens. Even after all of the awareness around the opioid crisis, the U.S. continues to have extreme levels of opioid prescriptions.

How can consumers advocate for a better health care system?

Most working age people receive their benefits through their workplace. Let your CEO and CFO know that the best way to slash health care costs is to improve benefits. Share a copy of The CEO’s Guide to Restoring the American Dream -- you can get a free download via https://healthrosetta.org/friends. They will initially be surprised that what sounds impossible is being done by hundreds of employers in every corner of the country. It’s happening in rural and urban settings, private and public sector employers and in large and small organizations. Share this TED talk with your co-workers that tells the story of the employer who has the best benefits package in the entire country, yet spends 55% less per capita on health benefits. The great news is that every employer can get these world class health outcomes for employees while saving tremendously. Join the DIY healthcare reform movement that is rising in this nation.