INTRODUCTIONS

“Outsiders often have an insight that an insider doesn't quite have.” Diane Abbott

​

Dear Mr. President, Honorable Members of Congress and Distinguished Staff,

 

I address you with respect and appreciation for your dedicated efforts to improve the lives of the American people.  Thank you for using your time, talents and resources to find solutions to some of our country’s vexing challenges.  I wish to, along with my colleagues Stephen F Hightower MD FACP and T Michael White MD FACP and other contributors, share ideas and perspectives as you face hugely consequential policy questions regarding the future of health care in the United States.

​

Our country faces a perfect storm in health care.  Americans’ health is deteriorating due to a profusion of health care crises: the ongoing Covid epidemic along with increasing incidence of other infectious threats; the exponential increase in diabetes and other chronic illnesses; the rapidly increasing mean age of our population with an associated explosion in age-related illnesses and disabilities; and narcotic-related deaths and addictions — to name just a few.  At the same time, Americans have seen a deterioration in their ability to pay for the health care they desperately need.  Employer-based insurance has become unaffordable for the bottom and even the middle tiers of workers due to escalating deductibles and premiums coupled with decreasing coverages.  Government-subsidized insurance is often little better, with limited coverages and huge deductibles.  The third component of this perfect storm is the inability of many health care facilities to stay ahead of the increasing financial and workforce demands necessary to address their communities’ burgeoning needs.

 

As physicians who have spent considerable time in their careers not only practicing medicine, but also helping to administer hospitals, training programs, clinics and other parts of the health care universe, we believe we can provide valuable perspectives and insights into potential solutions to address these seeming intractable challenges.  We have no ‘dog in the hunt’ in these efforts, other than to help both the country we love as well as the profession to which we’ve dedicated our lives to be successful while maximizing the health and physical/emotional welfare of countrymen and women whom we and you serve. (335 words)

​

Sincerely,

Dana S. Kellis, MD, PhD, MBA

Dr. Kellis will be pleased to hear from you.

Copy to: We The People (at fixingushealthcare.com)