Brady seeks input to cure healthcare
By JIMMY GALVAN Managing Editor

US CONGRESSMAN KEVIN BRADY shakes hands with Dr. Joe Wesley Dickerson during his meeting at the hospital's conference room. Brady was in Jasper to meet with residents on his "50 Ideas to Improve Health Care" tour. He said he plans on taking the best 50 ideas resulting from these meetings and introducing them as legislation during the next Congressional session. Newsboy photo/Jimmy Galvan

When U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady knew he needed some ideas on how to fix the healthcare system, he knew where he needed to look - the residents of Southeast Texas.

"We need to listen to the people who are in the system who are trying to make it better," Brady said. "Some have said we have a 21st Century healthcare system plagued by 18th century paperwork. It just drives up the costs."

Brady held his "50 ideas to improve healthcare" at Dickerson Memorial Hospital conference room to a packed room of hospital employees and administrators.

"I don't know anyone who isn't worried about healthcare and where it is going," Brady said. "We are at a critical point in our healthcare system because next year 77 million baby boomers are projected to retire."

According to Brady, the average Texas family spends $12,000 a year on out of pocket for healthcare. Adding to that figure, Brady said that more than 6,000 in Jasper County remain uninsured.

Brady said at the rate the country is heading now, Medicare and Medicaid will double and triple respectively in the next eight years.

"It will make up half of the entire federal budget and half of the entire state budget," Brady said. "Healthcare will be greater than the national defense and Homeland Security."

Several ideas were presented during the 45- minute session held Wednesday, Aug. 29, in Jasper.

Larry Wedekind, one of the owners of Dickerson Memorial, presented a couple of ideas to the congressman. Wedekind's first idea was to compensate physicians on results of how healthy they keep their elderly patients.

"It has made a huge difference," Wedekind said. "We work through the insurance companies and on a quarterly basis, these insurance companies share their profits with our doctors and they do with through compliance on a paid for quality criteria."

Wedekind said part of problem with the way hospitals are compensated is that hospitals are compensated by services delivered with fixed fees per diagnostic group.

"It's better than it used to be but the problem with the system now is that the hospital is at risk with a fixed fee environment," Wedekind said. "The hospital can very easily lose its shirt on any given patient. But if a patient develops an infection while in the hospital, then the hospital gets paid more under the current system.

"Is that right? We have to give you more services and labor but we are the ones who got you sick," Wedekind said. "Hospitals should be rewarded on how well we make you and how fast we make you well. We need a results oriented compensation system."

Wedekind also said he believes flu and pneumonia vaccines should be made more readily available to Medicare patients.

"By doing this, we will prevent the flu and pneumonia with these senior citizens," Wedekind said. "That is what kills most senior citizens. We need to make sure that all primary care physicians have an ample supply of these vaccines."

Dr. Joe Wesley Dickerson, a medical icon in Jasper, spoke on how bad the drug culture is destroying America's society.

Dickerson proposed that federal benefits should be tied into drug testing and those addicted to drugs or alcohol have their federal benefits stripped away.

"I have a Dickerson fit once a day about people coming in with a list of drugs and in two or three days, they have seen three doctors that have filled that list of drugs for them," Dickerson said. "We sober up these drug addicts and six weeks later, they are at another hospital doing the same damn thing.

"There is no hope for these people. We have to quit being nice about it," Dickerson said. "I think they should be cut off if they are doing drugs. Hit them in the pocketbook and get their attention by stopping their monthly check."

Wedekind said the system needs a clinical integration database reported by doctors and pharmacists to track narcotics being dispensed.

Brady said that seven "pill mills" in Orange County were closed down recently.

"We are seeing more overdoses in the past five years than ever before," Brady said.

Brady has made several stops in Southeast Texas to seek out ideas to fix the healthcare system.

Brady said the best 50 ideas would be turned into legislation and presented to the House for passage.

"Some of the best legislation came from small groups such as this," Brady said.

Anyone interested in presenting an idea to Brady can do so by logging on to www.house.gov.brady and post your idea under the 50 IDEAS link on the site.