‘To the Point: Healthcare and the Election’

America’s healthcare costs are rising faster than any place else in the world, but Americans are not getting healthier. Hear about the doctors, patients, insurance companies and the promises of presidential candidates.  Also, Congress lets the electronic wiretaping shield expire, and between primaries, Obama and Clinton are battling for super-delegates who could finally decide the Democratic nomination.

The cost of healthcare is rising all over the world, but nowhere faster than in the United States, even though more spending does not mean better health. In five years, the cost of health insurance premiums rose 87% in the US, four times faster than the growth in wages. Law enforcement officials in New York and California are investigating claims that insurance companies rig what they pay providers and dump patients after they get sick. But insurance, which is 25% of the cost, isn’t the only thing that’s driving up costs. Will the broader coverage promised by political candidates lead to better results? Are doctors and their patients helping to drive up costs by demanding more healthcare than they really need?

Guests:

– Uwe Reinhardt: Professor of Political Economics, Princeton University
– Jon Kingsdale: Executive Director, Commonwealth Connector
– Shannon Brownlee: Senior Fellow, New America Foundation
– Thomas Connally: retired doctor of internal medicine

Hosted by award-winning journalist Warren Olney, "To the Point" presents informative and thought-provoking discussion of major news stories — front-page issues that attract a savvy and serious news audience.

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