Meet the New CON, Same as the Old CON

Posted by Mark Todd Engler in Certificates of Need (CON), Health Care, Illinois on Jun 26th, 2009 | no responses

The Chicago Tribune exercised itself into a commendable lather this week, once more vigorously, effectively — and probably futilely — punching out the State of Illinois' most odiferous low-hanging bag of corrupt bureaucratic dung.

Last we looked in, lawmakers in America's second-largest (or is it the third now?) failed state were trying to decide how best to varnish over their vindictive certificate-of-need soviet's crass history of villainy and incompetence. The legislative culmination of their elite and considered wisdom? Change the CON board's name, make it bigger and bombard everybody on it with generous paychecks.

"In the great Illinois tradition of spending money for nothing, legislators this year explored a useless, corruption-plagued, money-burning agency … and made it grow," a Trib editorial declared on Wednesday. "The lawmakers made it cost more too."

Actually the agency in question, the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board, is about to perish. Or rather, the name will perish. Out of the ashes will rise … Ta-Da! The equally unjustifiable Health Facilities and Services Review Board! The Health Facilities Planning Board is an embarrassment. It is supposed to regulate hospital expansion in the state but has turned into a prime example of pay-to-play corruption(.)

…The old useless board had five members. The new useless board has nine. On the old board, members didn't get paid. At least above the table. On the new board, everybody gets paid. The chairman gets $90,000 a year. Commissioners get $65,000.

Periodically considered for euthanasia several times over the past few years, only to time and again be rescued by Gov. Blagojevich and his merry band of allied statehouse pranksters, the CON commission was supposed to die of sunset clauses this July 1.

But acting as usual in the interests of connected collectivists and privileged corporatists rather than free-market competition and patient choice, Illinois lawmakers decided instead to breathe unholy new life into the loathsome socialist abomination.

Why is this happening? Because the Illinois Hospital Association wanted it — and the association is a powerful lobby.

The Trib goes on with the obligatory call for Blago's replacement, Pat Quinn, to reject the bill and abort the new board because CON regimes inevitably result in "higher costs and less efficient care for patients."

The chances of a veto seem pretty slim, though. Back in April, Quinn's first choice to head the health-care infrastructure central planning board was a radical single-payer advocate. Supposedly picked to "restore integrity" to the crooked committee, Dr. Quentin Young — who was at one point Quinn's personal physician — shortly thereafter had to withdraw from consideration because he was himself intractably ensnared in a conflict of interest that made him ineligible for the post.

The reality is that Gov. Quinn, like a majority of politicians in Illinois (and 36 other states), might very well be ideologically incapable of seeing things so simply, rationally and morally as to let personal freedom and economic liberty guide the health care industry.