The Health Care Conundrum
Discusses the potential impact of various health care reforms on Los Angeles, CA. A number of circumstances distinguish the health care situation in Los Angeles from that of the rest of the country: disproportionately high level of uninsured residents, rapid growth of private & public managed care, a substantial surplus of hospital beds & specialist physicians, an underfunded county-operated health system in need of new facilities, a large legal immigration population in need of culturally & linguistically sensitive services, a large population of undocumented residents, & a 6-year economic recession & rise in unemployment. It is argued that health insurance reform, federalization of Medicaid, nonmandatory subsidies for the purchase of private health insurance, & voluntary medical savings accounts advocated by the US Congress would not have a substantial effect on Los Angeles's greatest problem, ie, its large number of uninsured residents. The recently defeated proposal by the Bill Clinton administration, with its emphasis on universal or nearly universal care, could have reduced this problem, but no solutions have been offered to the dilemma of undocumented persons. It is argued that the problem could be at least minimally handled through limited low-cost coverage for doctor visits, immunizations, & hospital stays. 5 Tables, 20 References. T. Sevier
