It seems the call for universal health care has another vocal champion. In addition to leaders in business, government and academia, Dr. Nancy Nielsen, the American Medical Association's (AMA) newly appointed president, is making headlines as a strong advocate for covering the uninsured. According to the Chicago Tribune:
She vowed at its annual meeting last week in Chicago to use "all of the power" of her presidency and the clout of the AMA "to let the nation know that we must cover America's uninsured."
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Nielsen practiced primary-care internal medicine for more than two decades, was a medical director for a Buffalo health plan until last year and today is senior associate dean at the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.
As the Tribune points out, we can be hopeful that Dr. Nielsen will be able to use both her role as AMA president and her background as a health plan executive to bridge the divide between health plans and physicians -- in particular on quality report cards and pay-for-performance initiatives.
Nielsen says she endorses the use of report cards by health insurance companies but wants physicians to be involved in what is rated.
"Instead of issuing that report card on what percent of my patients didn't get a mammogram, tell me the names of those patients so I can verify the data and reach out to each one," Nielsen said. "To be fair, some health plans have been fairly innovative and collaborative. But it's time for all of them to be."
Congratulations to Dr. Nielsen and we applaud the AMA's advocacy for the uninsured.
Hi Nielsen, your explanation is great. Thanks!
Posted by: Edwin | June 23, 2008 at 10:25 PM