How will president Obama’s up-and-coming healthcare reform affect medical innovation? A panel of experts will focus on the problem in ILSI-BioMed 2010 week
If you ask a Israeli what U.S. president Barack Obama most burning aspiration is, he’ll probably say it’s the resolution of the dispute in the Middle East. Put the same question to an American citizen, though, and he’ll immediately answer that Obama wants to reform the healthcare system, and for a good reason too. At the moment, healthcare costs are ruining families and putting individuals into debt in America. A recent survey estimated that 72 million non-elderly adults have accumulated medical debt or had difficulty paying medical bills in the past year – and 61 percent of them had insurance.
According to a recent press release from Obama’s crew,
“[the] health insurance reform will ensure that every American can find affordable health care coverage, control costs for families and provide Americans with unprecedented stability and security. Reform will also help strengthen the American economy and put more money in the pockets of American families. Lowering health care costs by 1 percent will create 320,000 jobs nationwide and raise median family income by $6,800 by 2030. Reform will also drive down premiums for families and limit out-of-pocket costs that eat into the family budget. “
So that’s the official tone of voice. But what’s really going to happen should this reform go into practice? And how should the medical and Biomed community handle the changes in policy? Frankly, I have no idea, but there is going to be a panel in the soon to come ILSI-BioMed Week, dealing with ‘MEDICAL INNOVATION AND U.S. HEALTHCARE REFORM – IN CONCERT OR AT ODDS?’
The moderator of the panel will be Debra R. Lappin, a leading strategist in public health and science policy, who serves as president to the Council for American Medical Innovation. The other participants in the panel will be Jennifer Bryant, Deputy Vice President, Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), Dr. Ted Buckley, Director for Economic Policy, Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), and Stephen Ubl, President & CEO, Advanced Medical Technology Association (Advamed), USA.
All in all, I believe this may well be one of the most important sessions in the entire conference, as the U.S. market for medical products is the largest in the world. If a butterfly flaps its wings over there, a tornado may sweep many Israeli companies off their feet. We may never know the future for certain, but we can make educated guesses – and they may save us money, or our skin, in the years to come.
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