Thursday, February 5, 2009
Politics / Woods Why Bredesen Would Make a Terrible Health Care Czar
Posted by Jeff Woods on Thu, Feb 5, 2009 at 5:12 AM
On the New Republic's health care blog, Jonathan Cohn says the buzz that Phil Bredesen might replace Tom Daschle as Obama's HHS secretary "is not completely idle speculation." In fact, Cohn writes, "I'm told that he's been discussed at high levels within the administration." (Some people are certainly taking it seriously. See Pete Kotz' post today about the Tennessee Health Care Campaign's phone drive against Bredesen's possible appointment.) But Cohn agrees Bredesen would make a terrible choice. Two reasons:
1. There's the obvious one--the governor dismantled TennCare, which was one of the nation's most ambitious health-care programs. As an aside, Cohn actually buys into the notion, which I don't believe, that the governor had no choice but to toss 200,000 people off the health care rolls to control spiraling costs. In fact, as it turned out, savings fell not so much to the state but to the federal government, which immediately stopped giving Tennessee $800 million in 2-to-1 matching money. The actual spending of state dollars, on the other hand, went up $60 million in the first year, according to a comptroller's report. The administration blamed the increase on health-care provider rate increases.
2. And there's also this: The governor not only killed TennCare, he did it arrogantly and in a high-handed way. That kind of temperament is not what you want in the guy who'll have to work with Congress and all the interest groups to achieve reform. Cohn nails it:
[W]hile Bredesen undoubtedly faced tough circumstances, he didn't exactly distinguish himself by coming up with creative solutions--or fighting for people who, after all, were among Tennessee's most vulnerable citizens. As liberal advocates protested planned cuts, he fought bitterly with them, threatening even more draconian measures if they wouldn't buy into his program. He is typical of the top figures in the health industry I've met over the years: Self-made entrepreneurs a bit too convinced of their own brilliance, completely unaware that the strategies for making private insurers profitable don't help--and often hurt--the sicker, poorer people whom insurance should ideally protect.
Update: Another "no" vote for Bredesen.
Update II: Ron Pollack, president of FamiliesUSA: "Phil Bredesen presided over the largest state cutback of public health programs in the history of our nation, so how can one not be worried about him? I worry that the relationship he would have to the Obama team would harm the credibility of what the president is trying to do. And I think it would create a firestorm among the strongest supporters of health care reform."
Comments (2)
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Well, certainly, I agree that if the Obama administration is committed to health care coverage for all Americans, Phil Bredesen ain't the dude. An HMO executive's skill set is hardly what we want as we move down this road.
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Bredesen burned his bridges with any type of consumer advocates when he went headstrong into the TennCare cuts, leaving many people and families destroyed.
Considering Bredesen for HHS Secretary would be like considering Bin Laden for Homeland Security Secretary. He is not a manager, he is a slasher, and will step on anyone getting in his way.
He won all 95 Tennessee Counties in the 2006 election with Republican Conservatives overwhelmingly voting for him. He is a Democrat in disguise; the bottom line is his only goal.
