WXOW News 19 La Crosse, WI – News, Weather and Sports |Gingrich in La Crosse on Health Care
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LA CROSSE, Wisconsin (WXOW) - Since leaving Congress in 1999 Newt Gingrich has certainly not left the public spotlight.
He is the founder of a organization called the Center for Health Transformation that seeks to reform health care through a market based, outcome focused system.
What he does not support is a government run program such as the one making its way through Congress. Gingrich says for most people, overhauling the entire current system amounts to fixing something that isn't broken.
Newt Gingrich spoke to a group of about a hundred doctors, nurses and administrators at Gundersen Lutheran Thursday, warning of the risks posed by a government run health care plan.
Newt Gingrich says; "This bill creates a huge amount of bureaucracy. Sets up all sorts of biases and I think is something you have to be very cautious about."
Gingrich identifies himself as a conservative Republican who brings a certain ideology to the debate.
But he criticizes the Bush Administration for not doing more to reform health care. And he agrees with most democrats that there is a real need for reform; just not the kind many of them are proposing.
Gingrich says; "The people who wrote this bill have been in charge of medicare and medicaid and as we proved in our book stop paying the crooks, they've done nothing to fix that 70 to 120 billion dollars a year of theft. Why would you want to expand the program that's riddled with theft."
Gundersen CEO Doctor Jeff Thompson says he doesn't care which party gets credit. He wants a reform plan that covers everyone while also making sure the payment system covers the cost of the care.
Jeff Thompson says; "Health care is paid for on a very antiquated fee for service system. People are paid for doing things, not keeping the patient healthy."
Both Thompson and Gingrich say personal responsibility should be a major component of health care reform.
Encouraging people to take responsibility for their own health through a better diet and lifestyle changes will mean less money spent on expensive treatments once the person gets sick.
