Resolution No. 1: Studying Single Payer in Ohio

Submitted by: Catherine Romanos, MD, and Brandon Crouch, MD, on behalf of the Central Ohio Academy of Family Physicians

WHEREAS: the health care landscape is changing rapidly and dramatically due to the current Administration’s goal to dismantle the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and

WHEREAS: while the ACA brought many improvements in health care and coverage, it still leaves many Ohioans without or with inadequate coverage, and

WHEREAS: Ohioans, as individuals, employers, and taxpayers have experienced a rise in the cost of health care and health care coverage in recent years, including rising premiums, deductibles, and copays, as well as restricted provider networks and high out-of-network charges, and

WHEREAS: nearly half of Americans (45%) say they would have difficulty paying an unexpected $500 medical bill, a third of those would have no way to pay it at all, and

WHEREAS: 60% of Americans believe that the government should ensure health care coverage for all Americans; and it is estimated that the federal single-payer legislation would benefit 95% of U.S. households and save $1.8 trillion by cutting administrative waste associated with private health insurance and reducing pharmaceutical prices to European levels(5), and

WHEREAS: the first two principles for health care reform developed by the Cognitive Coalition call for Universal Coverage and Access, and

WHEREAS: many people look to physicians to help define the direction of health care reform; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED: that OAFP will create a task force that will be available to legislators to further the study and discussion of single payer systems in Ohio.

1. Woolhandler S, Himmelstein DU. “Single-Payer Reform: The Only Way to Fulfill the
   President’s Pledge of More Coverage, Better Benefits, and Lower Costs,” Annals of Internal
   Medicine. Feb. 21, 2017. doi:10.7326/M17-0302.
2. Newkirk VR. “A Political Opening for Universal Health Care?” The Atlantic, Feb. 14, 2017
   Lazarus D. “Looking for a really good Obamacare replacement? Here it is” Los Angeles Times,
   Feb. 3, 2017
3. Karlamangla S.. “California lawmaker proposes bill that would create a single-payer
   healthcare system in the state”, Los Angeles Times, Feb. 17, 2017
4. Saluja S, Zallman L, Nardin R, Bor D, Woolhandler S, Himmelstein DU, McCormick D.
   Support for National Health Insurance Seven Years Into Massachusetts Healthcare Reform:
   Views of Populations Targeted by the Reform. Int J Health Serv. 2016;46(1):185-200.
5. Friedman, G. Healthcare for all; Economic impact study, 2013. Cited in LA Times, 2/26/2017.
6. Gaffney A, Woolhandler S, Angell M, Himmelstein DU. Moving Forward From the
   Affordable Care Act to a Single-Payer System. Am J Public Health. 2016 Jun;106(6):987-8.
7. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/01/13/more-americans-say-government-should-ensure-health-care-coverage/

Fiscal Note: Less than $200.