Loebsack: Stable health care coverage is key

I am proud to be part of an effort to improve health care in this country.

I have heard from countless Iowans on the need to change the current system. We have all heard the statistics. Premiums have doubled in nine years, growing three times faster than wages. A family in Iowa pays an extra $1,100 per year in premiums to support a broken system. If we do not alter the system, in 10 years, $1 out of $5 will be spent on health care.

As I've spoken with Iowa families, it's become clear they want stable health care coverage that can't be taken away, they want greater choices, and they want to know that if they get sick, they won't be forced into bankruptcy.

The current House health care bill takes significant steps in that direction, and contains numerous provisions which I strongly support.

Any reform this Congress passes must ensure stable health care coverage. I think everyone wants to know that if they lose their job, they will still have health insurance. They also want to know that they won't be denied coverage or have to pay higher rates if they have a pre-existing condition. The House bill ensures that health care cannot be taken away because you switch jobs or appear to be a high-risk patient.

The House bill also ensures greater choices for Iowa families. It sets up a Health Insurance Exchange, or a marketplace for insurance plans, that would help individuals navigate what can be a very confusing system. Iowans would be able to compare numerous plans with one another and choose which plan would work best for them. The exchange would include several private insurance plans as well as one public option.

The exchange would help control costs by creating competition within the insurance industry, and ultimately increase access to quality and preventive care. According to the American Medical Association, 94 percent of insurance markets in the United States are highly concentrated, meaning that one insurer controls a large share of the market.

A strong public option with lower rates would encourage private insurers to match those lower rates.

I believe this competition will work. The key to health care reform is cost-controlling measures that will ultimately provide patients with better-quality care. Everything I have been working on carries the dual goal of reducing costs and increasing the quality of patient care. That includes Medicare payment reform, addressing work force shortages in long-term care workers for our elderly and disabled, and establishing a level playing field between insurance companies and patients.

Recently, I was able to help broker a deal with my colleagues to fix the broken Medicare payment system that unfairly penalizes Iowa. By shifting the payment system to reward quality, we will help ensure that patients are diagnosed correctly and have access to quality health care providers.

Real reform, to me, means that we are able to offer Iowans stability and peace of mind with their insurance. Real reform means ensuring that every man, woman and child in this country has access to quality and affordable care. That means fixing a broken system. It means making the hard choices and demanding more from our providers.

The House bill is not perfect, and we still have a long way to go. I am proud of many of the substantive changes that we made to the bill before the August district work period.

I look forward to hearing from Iowans around the district as they discuss with me what real reform means to them.

David Loebsack, D-Mount Vernon, is Iowa's 2nd Congressional District representative.