Aetna President Mark Bertolini recently traveled around the country discussing health care reform with politicians and business leaders. Bertolini believes that the U.S. health system is in need of some big changes — and even advocates a health insurance mandate for all Americans.
But he conceded that reform on the federal level probably wouldn’t happen for a few years. Until then, states should be doing everything they can to get more people insured.
To do so, Bertolini suggested states allow individuals to buy plans without mandated benefits. Some states, including Connecticut, Aetna’s home state, require plans by law to cover around 50 different benefits.
Taking these mandates away, Bertolini suggests, would enable more people to afford coverage. And some groups, such as younger healthier people, don’t need these benefits anyway.
“Young immortals want three things. They want to look good. They want to feel good. And they want birth control. They don’t want coverage for diabetes. And they don’t want congestive heart failure coverage and all these other sorts of things, ” said Bertolini in an interview with the Charlotte Observer.
“If we had more flexibility at the state level, we could actually put together a product that appeals to [young adults], ” he added.
When asked about which of the 2008 presidential candidate’s health care reform plans Bertolini liked most, he said that he liked the public-private proposal from New York Senator Hillary Clinton.
Bertolini is opposed to a single-payer system as U.S. Representative Dennis Kucinich proposes.
“The result of a single-payer system is decreased access and services. I don’t think Americans are willing to give up the access to care they have at the level of quality they have, ” said Aetna’s president.
“We have more MRI machines in New York City than they have in all of England. ”
Another point that Bertolini addressed was guaranteed issue insurance — a policy that requires all insurers to accept all applicants. It’s a policy many insurers oppose, but Bertolini supports it… but in slow steps.
“A guaranteed issue would work where everybody’s required to have insurance. But you have to creep into it. You start with an individual mandate and ultimately when you get everybody in, you can move to more of a guaranteed issue, ” he explained.