The President Should Speak Less, Listen More

Posted by Laura Brod in Health Care on Sep 18th, 2009 | no responses

It is always great to have a sitting president visit Minnesota — regardless of party affiliation.

While President Obama briefly mentioned Mayo Clinic in his speech in Minneapolis last week, it would have been far more instructive for him, and the nation, had he gone to Rochester to see the cutting-edge treatments developed there. Despite President Obama's rhetorical reference to Mayo as an example of what is right, his "new plan" includes proposals that are antithetical to what makes Mayo work for so many people. Better listening might lead to better policy — policy that relies more on what Mayo has learned about bringing teamwork to bear on the best interests of the individual, and less on the heavy hand of the federal bureaucracy.

The president could have gone to Medtronic – a global leader with a reputation for innovation such as the integrated insulin pump/glucose monitoring device that improves outcomes and the lives of those with diabetes. Or, he could have met with the folks at Medtronic to listen to them talk about how his tax proposals will impact their ability to create and retain jobs in Minnesota, or in the United States, for that matter.

Of course, he could have taken time to visit the University of Minnesota – consistently ranked as one of the top hospitals for health outcomes and for efforts related to childhood cancers and autism therapies.

But he didn't. He came to Minnesota to give a partisan speech to generate support for his dea of "reform." Unfortunately, when you spend so much time telling people why you're right you can never really hear people trying to tell you that you might be wrong.

Minnesotans already know that our state is a proven incubator for cost-cutting ideas and cutting-edge healthcare technologies. All of us, regardless of party affiliation, must be concerned that these innovations may be at risk if we get this "reform" wrong.

We should also all agree that reining in health care costs is a must — the fiscal foundation of our country is at risk. Health-care spending accounts for approximately one-sixth of our national economy, and because of that, getting it right is critical.

Unfortunately, President Obama came to Minnesota to tell us what we must change in order to conform to a narrow Washington view of how our health care system should work. He came to Minnesota to tell us that he was going to take some of our ideas, combine them with some of their ideas – put them through the Washington, D.C., spin cycle – and hope that something good comes out he can call reform.

Further nationalizing health care should concern all of us. The Medicare program is an example of how federal management of health care is in need of fundamental reform and is actually short-changing states like Minnesota. Reforming Medicare to erase the outrageous inequities is something on which Republicans and Democrats in Minnesota agree — a great opportunity for common ground.

The president also has talked about how eliminating "waste, fraud, and abuse" in Medicare must be undertaken. I completely agree, and I suspect any tax-paying Minnesotan would, too.

But it underscores the problem with the current state of Washington thinking: If we know there is massive waste, fraud and abuse in the billions of dollars we currently spend on health care in this country, should we not address that before creating another huge government bureaucracy that will generate even greater waste, fraud and abuse?

The president can regain the trust of the people and actually pass meaningful reform if he's candid about what's working in health care, what's broken and what the solutions require. But if he relies solely on lofty words that gloss over the serious flaws in bringing even more government control to health care, he won't receive the citizens' trust.

The president came to Minnesota to give a partisan speech before a partisan crowd. And I respect his right to do this. But, Mr. President, the time for good speeches is past. It's time to listen to those who have already made health care reform work and who have made a difference. It is time to put action over words.

It's time to put the real ability, talents and skills of some of our nation's proven leaders in this arena – many from Minnesota – to work bringing forward solutions that ensure that any health reform does just that: work.