Angela Braly, the CEO of Wellpoint, has recently spoke to the Economic Club, sharing her views on health care reform. And, as Forbes Magazine’s eighth most powerful woman in the world, people are taking notice. Although Braly admits that she fully supports health care reform, she disagrees with the current health care reform proposal. In fact, she’s most concerned about the shift in focus, noting that:

It has gone from a debate about health care reform to health insurance reform.

Braly acknowledges that changes need to be made to our health care system, and she fully supports reform that will provide reliable insurance coverage to every American, while keeping health care costs low. She pointed out the inconsistencies of the current system, noting that the current system promotes quantity over quality. Not only that, but it has put a huge burden on insured Americans. Braly goes on to explain that the discrepancies between Medicare and Medicaid payments and actual medical costs are passed on to private insurance holders. Additionally, the cost of medical care for the uninsured is passed on to private insurance holders as well – It’s not fair, and it certainly won’t work in the long run. In fact, Braly even went so far as to compare it to a current and well-known disaster:

Sounds a lot like the Fannie Mae for health care and I think we all know how that experiment is going.

Braly stands strong in her support for health insurance providers, although she does acknowledge that certain changes need to be made. With Braly’s strategy, health insurance providers need to move beyond processing claims and managing risk. Instead, they need to start encouraging healthy behaviors, providing incentives for health customers, and educating consumers about a healthy lifestyle. Private insurance providers need to work with the government to ensure that all Americans can get health insurance coverage, regardless of their income or pre-existing conditions. Health insurance plans need to be more customizable to customer’s unique needs. Braly wants insurers to offer a range of health insurance choices to customers, instead of putting everyone in a “one size fits all plan.”

However, Brady does acknowledge that drastically lowering health insurance costs is not a smart move. According to Braly, only 3 cents of every dollar spent on health insurance premiums goes towards company profits, while 87 cents go towards medical are. Braly maintains that 87 cents of every dollar is a truly significant amount to be spent directly on health care, and it would be nearly impossible to change that number much more. Braly firms her point by saying:

If you completely eliminated insurance industry profits, which is clearly the aim for some, you will pay for two days of health care in America.

But, most of all, Braly is most worried about the public health insurance option. And, in fact, Wellpoint has released a statement acknowledging their concerns about the public health plan:

WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP) is deeply disappointed with the legislation progressing in Congress. Both the bill proposed by the House of Representatives and the bill passed by the Senate HELP Committee miss the opportunity to address the underlying cost drivers in our health care system. These bills rely on price controls and government expansion rather than measures to improve the quality of health care received and access to care by the uninsured. This only serves to make health care more expensive and less accessible, threatening the stability of the coverage most Americans have today.

Braly maintains that the key to health care reform is “to fix what is broken, without breaking what still works.”

Although that statement was enough to put a huge smile on our faces, she made us even happier with her next statement:

It won’t be easy and it should not be quick.

We couldn’t agree more. Just like Angela Braly, we fully acknowledge that some form of health care reform is necessary. However, it’s going to be a huge and drastic change to our country, affecting everyone. We need to take our time, consider every option, and make sure that we know it will work. We can’t just rush something through, hoping for the best. Because what if it doesn’t work? That’s what scares us the most.

Source: Wellpoint CEO Braly Argues For Health Care Reform