must read for health care policy makers
341482
Although this book was written in 2008 and he clearly, in retrospect, got some things wrong the overall concepts are very relevant for the present. If one wants to improve health care in the US this book should be mandatory reading.
2241137
Stan has done an outstanding job in explaining the ins and outs of health care reform. The book is a quality refernce book on policy issues surrounding the complex US health care system.
2185221
This book is a MUST READ for everyone!  If you want to be aware of the how the medical system is motivated, funded and managed and to understand that it is a large complicated and multilayered system, you need to begin by reading this book.  As a patient, and a potential hospital patient, you need to understand how to advocate for yourself and your loved ones and how to try to protect yourself when making health care decisions, and especially in understanding the value of having an ethical, morally responsible and conscientious health care provider and advocate.  You will be shocked by what you read, but you need to know where you stand as a patient in the health care system.
3153645
Very informative. With everyones political views flying around about healthcare, ObamaCare Simplified is a one stop shop of information. It starts off with the history of healthcare and gives a brief explanation of each system. It covers why healthcare is so expensive in America and why so many Americans are uninsured. It explains how the Affordable Care Acts affects individuals and small business owners and a breakdown of penalties if they don't comply. This book is an easy read and good for those who want to understand the healthcare dilemma without all the confusing opinions out there.
3707645
The timing of this important research could not be better given the hysteria surrounding Obamacare, which focuses only on access to basic, technical  medical care. Lost in those discussions is any appreciation of what truly makes us healthy. This work valiantly attempts to refocus the discourse on more than insurance or  modern technology, and demonstrates how other developed countries do a much better job of balancing the other critical factors to healthy living . The data is persuasive, and needs to be shared.
3913037
One of the best books I have read on improving patient safety and quality of care in healthcare. Anyone in healthcare should read this.
4733283
Steve Hyde has taken an extremely complex problem and in a straight forward logical fashion crafted a free market approach to high quality affordable health coverage for all.  This book should be required reading for anyone who has the responsibility to cast a vote that would change the way health care is delivered and financed. Personally, I would feel much better about the prospects of health care reform if it included Hyde's American Choice Health Plan.

Hyde very skillfully outlines a free enterprise solution to the myriad of problems that currently exist in our broken system with a fix that builds on the principles of capitalism by preserving choice and introducing personal responsibility.  Aren't those the things that made this country great?  His plan provides a doable transition from our existing system that will work for all Americans without fleecing the taxpayers. For you skeptics out there that believe free market health care does not work, I challenge you to educate yourselves with Hyde's book and you will not be able to logically support more government intervention in health care.
1788697
Dr. Purva Rawal does an excellent job examining a very complex topic most American's are quite clueless about. The book is very clear, easy to read, and informative. This is a must read for anyone who is trying to educate themselves on the ACA and the politics surrounding it. I would say I suggest this to anyone who works in the healthcare space, but healthcare effects us all. Great book to educate yourself on one of the most important movements in politics today.
3120391
Working on my thesis on the US healthcare system and some legal issues  surrounding it (don't worry; I won't go into it here), I recently  discovered this book and must sing its praise.
Dr. Govern's writing style  is engaging and he provides here a concrete and strong analysis of his  subject.
I recommend to anyone this book for a thorough and  thought-provoking look at problem definition and the history of US Health  Policy.
4630448
The Freedom Plan delivers both an invaluable history of how America became mired in the current health care crisis as well as a reasonable alternative to Obamacare. Perry is an orthopedic surgeon who grew his practice over the past four decades, so he has experienced first-hand the major changes in the way health care has been delivered and paid for during this period.

Using this expertise, Perry manages to elucidate, in plain style, the very complicated subject of how health care is run in this country and how each of the players--insurance companies, doctors, and patient--are complicit in the current crisis. His solution is a back-to-the-future plan wherein patients and doctors would reestablish a direct relationship that has been corrupted by the intervention of big insurance companies into health care decisions.  Moreover, he has a practical solution to pay for health care that eliminates much of the inefficiency embedded in the current system.
989568
Health Care Reform for Humans is a wonderful book that enables consumers to have a much needed understanding of how the healthcare system works and and what they can expect from new healthcare policies that are coming down the road.  Dave's understanding of the healthcare system from both the corporate side and the consumer side are very evident and I could not agree more with his ending thoughts of "own your health"!!
4792709
With the Obama administration now bringing healthcare to the forefront of political agenda, Critical is a must-read for anyone wishing to understand the issues being debated on Capitol Hill. Senator Daschle tackles the long-lingering problems of our national healthcare system, beginning with the roots of insurance a little over a century ago.  In part one, Daschle describes the evolution of healthcare in the United States and how over time growing complexity has overloaded the payment protocols and systems established decades ago.  Importantly, he describes which initiatives have worked, and why certain plans such as the failed Clinton-era reforms of the 1990s led to political disaster.

Daschle does an excellent job pointing out the deficiencies in our current system, such as the misaligned incentives of an employer-based healthcare system.  As is, employer-provided healthcare is a problem for the morbidly ill - the sick are unable to find work, which deprives them of the treatment necessary to return to health, leading to a vicious cycle.  This is not only a financial burden on individuals, but a toll on the greater economy.  Start-up companies with smaller pools of workers become challenged with the undue burden of exorbitantly rising costs.  Entrepreneurs have less freedom to start new businesses due to the risks of not carrying health insurance.  Another unintended consequence arises from our current managed care-based system - patients without insurance are charged much greater fees for service because they do not have the benefit of the negotiated discounts granted by a PPO or HMO.

In addition to ideas such as the expansion of coverage using federal dollars, the crux of Daschle's cost-containment solution lies in a Health Board.  This proposed Board will be a Federal regulatory agency capable of setting rules and standards for healthcare providers.  It will set criteria for treatment, and break down the much-too-cozy relationships between industry suppliers and the physicians that deliver their supplies.  The Federal Health Board will be a cross-functional agency, designed to cover a more encompassing jurisdiction than the FDA or NIH alone.

While I applaud the Senator for effectively addressing America's healthcare problem and presenting a well-thought plan, however I personally do not believe a Federal Health Board is a panacea.  A number of conflicts could still exist with a Health Board, especially if given unchecked power as suggested in Daschle's plan.  With the federal government deciding the best practices for treatment, would this necessarily lead to better care for all individuals?  Or would the Federal Health Board deny individuals better, but unproven treatments in exchange for more statistically econometric treatments to the payors?  America is now caught in a bind between cost containment, and its thirst for more costly but more experimental sets of treatments.

Whether you agree or disagree with Daschle's solution, this book is an excellent starting point to open a healthcare debate.  It is a must-read to stay informed about today's healthcare crisis and the ideas influencing public policy.  Many of Daschle's lines of thinking are evident in political discussion and are likely to appear within upcoming legislation, in some form or another.
4813415
Absolutely a good book with plenty of insight in the unfortunate path the US has chosen to follow regarding the healthcare system and our spending. A must read for those who want to see what the future may hold.
734687
With over forty years experience in the health care field, both on the provider and payer sides, I was both curious and enthusiastic about reading Frank Lobb's "Too Big to Be Legal". I was not disappointed! The well-researched book strips the clothes off the Emperor (the American managed care industry) to reveal the reality of a system that has all too often robbed citizens of the cherished sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship. Lobb boldly challenges medical insurers and legislatures to initiate reform that is truly in the best interests of patients. He also provides suggestions that patients and physicians can take to help preserve the doctor-patient relationship and ways to legally avoid inappropriate billing by hospitals and insurers. This book is a must read to help understand a medical system that has become so complex that few understand; and many in the public and private medical complex are unwilling to reveal.
2257066
This is the best book I've read on health reform. It challenged all of my perspectives on ObamaCare and made me realize what is really at stake for healthcare access, quality and delivery in America come this November and beyond.
536107
This is a seminal book that should be required reading for all patients,physicians and healthcare workers. Fidelity (an unlikely circumstance) of healthcare delivery processes leads to improved patient safety and measurable quality enhancement.  If you're a physician, who does not need to use checklists, would you be willing to tell the physician or surgeon treating you that you do not want she/he to use a checklist as she/he treats you? If yes, stop and read this book. Alternatively, increase your malpractice insurance!
29468
This book a must read for anyone interested in understanding the issues surrounding privacy in the healthcare industry.  In plain English, the author has down a wonderful job in preparing the reader for an informed discussion he or she may have with others working with the privacy issue in healthcare. This book does not go deeply into all of the federal guidelines, but it does contain an excellent appendix and reference list for further reading.