Penn State Abington opened its doors to the community on the evening of Wednesday, Sept. 30, for a panel discussion and audience question-and-answer event that covered the health care system in the United States. With nearly all seats taken, it was obvious the audience was ready for some answers to the often times confusing health care debate that is currently raging throughout the country.
The three panelists, who all attended Penn State Abington and received their degrees from the University, were: Cathy Young Sheehan '82, assistant district attorney of New York, handles cases involving health care fraud and abuse; Henry S. Mishel '70, chief of pulmonary medicine and medical director of the respiratory care department at Abington Memorial Hospital; and Samuel H. Steinberg '72, a hospital consultant and expert for medical malpractice cases.
The lively discussion was moderated by Ross Brinkert, assistant professor of corporate communications at Penn State Abington. Questions and answers were as varied as the audience members. Considering the facts that Brinkert brought to the opening of the discussion -- 46 million Americans do not have health insurance coverage, medical care costs are rising faster than inflation, and 59 percent of Americans are confused about what's going on -- the panelists' answers were much anticipated.
The panelists agreed that while there certainly are strengths in the current health care system (development and utilization of new technology, exceptional training for health care professionals, etc.) it is a "disgrace" that some Americans have no health insurance and/or poor health insurance.
Sheehan believes the current system is flawed because it is connected to employment. "It's a huge problem because if you lose your job you lose your insurance. There's no safety net for these people. None of us want to give up anything, but all Americans are going to have to give something up -- pay more taxes -- so everyone can have quality care."
Mishel, a self described "practicing physician in the trenches," expressed frustration with the fragmentation of patient care causing the "coordination of the care to be less than optimal."
When considering the question, "Is it un-American to force people to have health insurance?" the panelists were in agreement again -- "everyone should be covered; everyone should be contributing."
"As long as the rules are fair across the board, said Sheehan."If the rules are fair, it's a good idea."
"We do it with automobile insurance," said Steinberg.
Mishel would like to see basic care for everybody. "Everybody is covered, but not everything is covered." Although he did admit he didn't know how to achieve this ideal coverage.
The last question of the evening had to do with the H1N1 influenza. Mishel, the only medical doctor on the panel, believes it will be a big epidemic this year. "I believe the people who get it will be sicker than with regular flu. This is a serious problem. The big issue is hand washing, social distancing, and coughing into a tissue. I'm a pulmonary physician and I would encourage everyone to pay attention to what they say (online) at cdc.gov." For current updates on H1N1 influenza, go to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Web site at http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/update.htm or http://flu.psu.edu/ online.