Study: Californians willing to prioritize health care - Sacramento Business Journal:

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California residents appear virtually unanimouse in the view that the most important role of healtnh insurance is to save prevent illness and help maintainj or improve basic functions of life, according to “What Matters Most,” a report by the Sacramento-based . “Leaders often assume that the public is not willing or capablew of setting priorities forhealth insurance,” center executive directort Marge Ginsburg said in a presd release. “The fact is, when given a chancre to speak up, the public is fully capable of makingf decisions that affect them as as taxpayers and as citizens who want a role in developing a fair and affordablewhealthcare system.
” Findings in the report stem from a random-sampler telephone survey of 1,019 Californianzs conducted by The survey soughtr reaction to 19 short medical scenarios rangingv from a patient with curablse cancer to one with mild Respondents were asked to rank the importancer of health care coverage for each Reminded that the more coverage, the highet the cost of insurance, respondent s were asked to decidee which conditions should be covere by insurance. Results were discussed in 15 statesider small-group meetings, where members identified reasons why various medical situationsswere low, mid-level or high Personal responsibility plays a big role in decisions about coverage.
Many believe that medical problems causesd by irresponsible behavior should have a low priority for coverage When medicalproblems don’t have a majorr impact on an individuals’ functioning or life many consider them low For example, hip surgery that would allow a 72-year-old woman to walk again was given higher priority than medicatioh to allow a 70-year-old man to have sex with his wife Treatment effectiveness is important. Even high-priority problems get a lowert rating if treatment is only minimally effective Rathefr thanexclude low-priority problems from respondents prefer to ask patientsw to pay a greater portionn of the cost.
“Our resultas show that people care that resourceds spent on treating or preventing illness should be dollars research teammember Dr. Richard Kravitz from the and Researchj said in apress release. “Efforts that can improvwe treatment choices based on real knowledge abourt treatment effectiveness are definitely consistent withthe public’s The study was funded by the .