reform protects employers from liability when they are
not involved in the medical decision that results in
harm. The principle that we should be held
accountable for our own actions is universally
accepted. The bottom line is that managed care plans
should be held accountable, just as everyone else is.
Congress can improve ERISA by explicitly removing the
?preemption clause? that currently limits states?
abilities to establish accountability for wrongful
denials of MCOs? to their patients. If ratified, the
Patients? Bill of Rights would amend the loophole in
ERISA. Congress should do its part to protect the
welfare of those Americans that are affected by
ERISA-regulated MCOs. Three of the top managed care
organizations in the industry, including Kaiser
Permanente, are calling for legally enforced
standards. Clearly, ?when respected leaders of an
industry are calling for standards to be placed upon
themselves, it is a sure sign that Congress should
act? (Managed Care Reform: Fact vs. Fiction).
Works Cited
Clinton, Bill. ?The President?s Radio Address.?
Weekly Compilation of Presidential
Documents. 10 August 1998: 1556.
?ERISA Managed Care Organizations Should Be Held
Accountable for Decisions that
Harm Patients.? 1 February 1998.
*http://www.apa.org/practice/erisa.html*
(21 April 1999).
Fox, Peter D., et al., eds. Determinents of HMO
Success. Office of Health Maintenance
Organizations. January 1998: 56.
Hoffman, Ronald F. and Mark O. Hiepler. ?An Easy Out
for Managed Care.? The
Washington Post. 4 April 1998: A19.
?Managed Care Reform Legislation: Fact vs. Fiction.?
1 January 1999.
*http://www.patientadvocacy.org/main/managed
care/mcrl_fvf.html*
(21 April 1999).
?Managed Care: What Consumers Need to Know.? 3 August
1998.
*http:www.aarp.org/monthly/managedcare/home.html* (21
April 1999).
Pollack, Ron. ?Current Problems with the Federal
Employment Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974.? 14 May 1998.
*http://www.familiesusa.org/erisa2.htm*
(21 April 1999).
Zelman, Walter A. and Robert A. Berenson. The Managed
Care Blues and How to Cure
Them. Washington D.C.: Georgetown Press, 1998.
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Clinton, Bill. “The President’s Radio Address.” Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents. 10 August 1998: 1556.
“ERISA Managed Care Organizations Should Be Held Accountable for Decisions that
Harm Patients.” 1 February 1998.
(21 April 1999).
Fox, Peter D., et al., eds. Determinents of HMO Success. Office of Health Maintenance Organizations. January 1998: 56.
Hoffman, Ronald F. and Mark O. Hiepler. “An Easy Out for Managed Care.” The
Washington Post. 4 April 1998: A19.”Managed Care Reform Legislation: Fact vs. Fiction.” 1 January 1999. http://www.patientadvocacy.org/main/managed care/mcrl_fvf.html
(21 April 1999).
“Managed Care: What Consumers Need to Know.” 3 August 1998.
(21 April 1999).
Pollack, Ron. “Current Problems with the Federal Employment Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974.” 14 May1998.
(21 April 1999).
Zelman, Walter A. and Robert A. Berenson. The Managed Care Blues and How to Cure Them. Washington D.C.: Georgetown Press, 1998.