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Photo by Matthew Lester
A group of US physicians has called for the creation of a publicly financed, single-payer national health program that would cover all Americans for all medically necessary care.
The proposal, which was drafted by a panel of 39 physicians, was announced in an editorial published in the American Journal of Public Health.
The proposal currently has more than 2000 signatures from physicians practicing in 48 states and the District of Columbia.
“Our nation is at a crossroads,” said Adam Gaffney, MD, a pulmonary disease and critical care specialist in Boston, Massachusetts, who is lead author of the editorial and co-chair of the working group that drafted the proposal.
“Despite the passage of the Affordable Care Act 6 years ago, 30 million Americans remain uninsured, an even greater number are underinsured, financial barriers to care like co-pays and deductibles are rising, bureaucracy is growing, provider networks are narrowing, and medical costs are continuing to climb.”
Dr Gaffney and his colleagues described their publicly financed, single-payer national health program (NHP) as follows.
Patients could choose to visit any doctor and hospital. Most hospitals and clinics would remain privately owned and operated, receiving a budget from the NHP to cover all operating costs. Physicians could continue to practice on a fee-for-service basis or receive salaries from group practices, hospitals, or clinics.
The program would be paid for by combining current sources of government health spending into a single fund with new taxes that would be fully offset by reductions in premiums and out-of-pocket spending. Co-pays and deductibles would be eliminated.
The single-payer program would save about $500 billion annually by eliminating the high overhead and profits of insurance firms and the paperwork they require from hospitals and doctors.
The administrative savings of the system would fully offset the costs of covering the uninsured and upgraded coverage for everyone else—eg, full coverage of prescription drugs, dental care, and long-term care. Savings would also be redirected to currently underfunded health priorities, particularly public health.
The “single payer” would be in a position to negotiate lower prices for medications and other medical supplies.
More details and documents related to the physicians’ proposal are available on the Physicians for a National Health Program website.
The Physicians for a National Health Program is a nonpartisan, nonprofit research and education organization founded in 1987. The organization had no role in funding the aforementioned proposal or editorial. 
Photo by Matthew Lester
A group of US physicians has called for the creation of a publicly financed, single-payer national health program that would cover all Americans for all medically necessary care.
The proposal, which was drafted by a panel of 39 physicians, was announced in an editorial published in the American Journal of Public Health.
The proposal currently has more than 2000 signatures from physicians practicing in 48 states and the District of Columbia.
“Our nation is at a crossroads,” said Adam Gaffney, MD, a pulmonary disease and critical care specialist in Boston, Massachusetts, who is lead author of the editorial and co-chair of the working group that drafted the proposal.
“Despite the passage of the Affordable Care Act 6 years ago, 30 million Americans remain uninsured, an even greater number are underinsured, financial barriers to care like co-pays and deductibles are rising, bureaucracy is growing, provider networks are narrowing, and medical costs are continuing to climb.”
Dr Gaffney and his colleagues described their publicly financed, single-payer national health program (NHP) as follows.
Patients could choose to visit any doctor and hospital. Most hospitals and clinics would remain privately owned and operated, receiving a budget from the NHP to cover all operating costs. Physicians could continue to practice on a fee-for-service basis or receive salaries from group practices, hospitals, or clinics.
The program would be paid for by combining current sources of government health spending into a single fund with new taxes that would be fully offset by reductions in premiums and out-of-pocket spending. Co-pays and deductibles would be eliminated.
The single-payer program would save about $500 billion annually by eliminating the high overhead and profits of insurance firms and the paperwork they require from hospitals and doctors.
The administrative savings of the system would fully offset the costs of covering the uninsured and upgraded coverage for everyone else—eg, full coverage of prescription drugs, dental care, and long-term care. Savings would also be redirected to currently underfunded health priorities, particularly public health.
The “single payer” would be in a position to negotiate lower prices for medications and other medical supplies.
More details and documents related to the physicians’ proposal are available on the Physicians for a National Health Program website.
The Physicians for a National Health Program is a nonpartisan, nonprofit research and education organization founded in 1987. The organization had no role in funding the aforementioned proposal or editorial.
Photo by Matthew Lester
A group of US physicians has called for the creation of a publicly financed, single-payer national health program that would cover all Americans for all medically necessary care.
The proposal, which was drafted by a panel of 39 physicians, was announced in an editorial published in the American Journal of Public Health.
The proposal currently has more than 2000 signatures from physicians practicing in 48 states and the District of Columbia.
“Our nation is at a crossroads,” said Adam Gaffney, MD, a pulmonary disease and critical care specialist in Boston, Massachusetts, who is lead author of the editorial and co-chair of the working group that drafted the proposal.
“Despite the passage of the Affordable Care Act 6 years ago, 30 million Americans remain uninsured, an even greater number are underinsured, financial barriers to care like co-pays and deductibles are rising, bureaucracy is growing, provider networks are narrowing, and medical costs are continuing to climb.”
Dr Gaffney and his colleagues described their publicly financed, single-payer national health program (NHP) as follows.
Patients could choose to visit any doctor and hospital. Most hospitals and clinics would remain privately owned and operated, receiving a budget from the NHP to cover all operating costs. Physicians could continue to practice on a fee-for-service basis or receive salaries from group practices, hospitals, or clinics.
The program would be paid for by combining current sources of government health spending into a single fund with new taxes that would be fully offset by reductions in premiums and out-of-pocket spending. Co-pays and deductibles would be eliminated.
The single-payer program would save about $500 billion annually by eliminating the high overhead and profits of insurance firms and the paperwork they require from hospitals and doctors.
The administrative savings of the system would fully offset the costs of covering the uninsured and upgraded coverage for everyone else—eg, full coverage of prescription drugs, dental care, and long-term care. Savings would also be redirected to currently underfunded health priorities, particularly public health.
The “single payer” would be in a position to negotiate lower prices for medications and other medical supplies.
More details and documents related to the physicians’ proposal are available on the Physicians for a National Health Program website.
The Physicians for a National Health Program is a nonpartisan, nonprofit research and education organization founded in 1987. The organization had no role in funding the aforementioned proposal or editorial.