Who Killed Health Care ?

Who Killed Health Care ? : "Harvard Business School Professor Regina Herzlinger has written a must-read book, 'Who Killed Health Care?'. It is written in the style of a murder mystery. The puzzle to be solved: Who killed Jack Morgan, (a patient who dies while awaiting a kidney transplant)? Like Murder on the Orient Express, there is not one killer here but many: health insurance companies, hospitals, employers, the federal government and even academics. Jack Morgan is a composite figure, based on the experience of 112 people who needlessly died while waiting for a kidney transplant. They were all insured by California-based Kaiser Permante. Of those who died while waiting, 25 had a perfect match. So the mystery begins, appropriately enough, by asking; what's wrong with Kaiser? 'The original idea behind Kaiser was not all bad,' writes Herzlinger. The company was formed by caring doctors who wanted to practice high quality medicine. Things went wrong when managed care became commercialized and insurers started telling doctors what to do so they could save a buck. Herzlinger is not against managed care in principle, but she argues health insurers are the last people who should be doing it. Geico may be a great auto insurance company, but who would go to Geico for auto repairs? The same principle applies to health care."