Healthcare Reform -- In the Workplace

In what is becoming his trademark style, President Obama sent a letter Wednesday to two Democrat congressmen, informing them that he expects them to have healthcare reform legislation passed by October. And in keeping with how he handled the stimulus, he's leaving the details up to Congress. He does signal that his idea of healthcare reform is basically public insurance.

Worrying about universal health insurance before seriously addressing healthcare itself is like treating a patient before diagnosing the problem. If we rethink how we handle healthcare and cut costs instead of merely slowing the growth (see yesterday's post below), insurance reform will naturally follow.

To truly cut healthcare costs, we must put everything on the table -- sick leave, doctor's office hours, hospital practices, treatment costs, malpractice lawsuits, drug patents, even the training of healthcare providers.

Let's start with the workplace, which is generally overlooked in healthcare discussions. Through sick leave policies -- or lack thereof -- the workplace can be a breeding ground for contagious illnesses and a huge obstacle to preventive care. Think about the problems with common sick leave policies:

--No or limited sick leave. Employees come to work sick, making others sick and reducing productivity. They also may not take the time for preventive appointments and may forgo necessary treatment that is only available during the workday. When they do seek help, their condition is pretty bad -- and costs a lot more to treat.

--Sick leave restricted to the employee only. Workers may not take children, spouses or elderly parents to necessary medical appointments -- until an emergency crops up. Again, the costs skyrocket.

--Family leave restricted to extended periods of time and only after all other leave is used. If workers could take family leave for a week or so without jeopardizing vacation time or their own sick leave, they would be free to care for family members while they're in the hospital or recuperating at home. This could cut down on in-home care and speed recovery time for their loved ones.

Changes in sick leave could be written into labor laws. And employers should be encouraged to promote telecommuting when their workers may be contagious but not too sick to work.

Sanitation is another obvious issue in the workplace. How many employers change their air filters regularly or clean the HVAC system? How many warn sensitive workers of pending pesticide spraying? How many workers do not properly wash their hands? These are simple things, but they all add up.

Feel free to contribute your ideas for changes that can be made in the workplace that would help with our healthcare crisis.

Next, we'll tackle the doctor's office.