Monday, August 22, 2005
Who Says....
That the private sector always performs better than the public?
Some experts point to the VA makeover as a lesson in how the nation's troubled health care system might be able to heal itself...Since 1995, the VA says, the number of patients it is treating has doubled, to about 5.2 million. At the same time, the department reports that it has trimmed its staff by about 12,000 people, opened hundreds of outpatient clinics and shifted its focus to primary care, while cutting costs per patient by about half.
"If we've proved anything . . . in the last 10 years, it is that quality is less expensive," ...The VA's metamorphosis began in the early 1990s, when it was under attack and worried about its future. Officials turned to Kenneth W. Kizer. A physician and former Naval Reserve officer, Kizer had earned kudos for helping restructure health services for the state of California.
Some experts point to the VA makeover as a lesson in how the nation's troubled health care system might be able to heal itself...Since 1995, the VA says, the number of patients it is treating has doubled, to about 5.2 million. At the same time, the department reports that it has trimmed its staff by about 12,000 people, opened hundreds of outpatient clinics and shifted its focus to primary care, while cutting costs per patient by about half.
"If we've proved anything . . . in the last 10 years, it is that quality is less expensive," ...The VA's metamorphosis began in the early 1990s, when it was under attack and worried about its future. Officials turned to Kenneth W. Kizer. A physician and former Naval Reserve officer, Kizer had earned kudos for helping restructure health services for the state of California.
