Health Care Coalition Says All Is Well
A White House health care coalition insisted on Friday that it is “committed to working together,— despite apparent dissension recently among the six stakeholder groups representing organized labor, drug and device makers, insurance providers, hospitals and doctors.
“Our organizations are currently engaged in an intensive process to develop proposals to reduce the rate of increase in future health care costs,— the six groups wrote in a statement on Friday. “We look forward to offering cost-savings recommendations in the weeks ahead.—
Coalition executives met with President Barack Obama at the White House on Monday, promising to help trim more than $2 trillion in health care expenses during the next decade — an ambitious goal by many estimates.
But the New York Times reported on Thursday that trade groups representing hospitals and insurance companies were upset that Obama “had substantially overstated their promise earlier this week to reduce the growth of health spending.—
American Hospital Association President Richard Umbdenstock told the Times there was a “misunderstanding— within his group’s membership.
The White House health care coalition includes AdvaMed, the American Medical Association, Service Employees International Union, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and the American Hospital Association.