Act now for secure future of health care

We can be grateful for Utah's health system — our health costs are among the lowest and our population is among the healthiest in the nation. The insurance industry is robust and competitive, with two major players — Humana and Aetna — entering our market just this year. Next month, Intermountain Healthcare will open the largest state-of-the-art medical campus in Utah and one of the largest in the western United States. We should applaud these achievements.

Unfortunately, these accomplishments overshadow the very serious problems that exist in Utah's (and the nation's) health system. Health care is far too expensive, at times has dubious outcomes and leaves hundreds of thousands of Utahns without the peace of mind that comes from health insurance coverage.

Consider these troubling realities:

In the past 10 years, median household income in Utah has grown by 15 percent, while family health insurance premiums in Utah grew by 109 percent.

In 2006, health care premium increases were twice that of earnings and more than twice that of inflation.

Misplaced incentives — such as cost-shifting, hidden taxes and physician self-referral — create overutilization of health care services, costing society far more than necessary for quality care. For instance, the National Imaging Association's own audit concluded that 40 percent of diagnostic imaging, such as an MRI, is inappropriate and noncontributory.

An estimated 360,000 Utahns lack health insurance. Approximately 90,000 of these uninsured Utahns are children. The uninsured still receive care, but it is provided at the very costly back end (e.g., emergency room) instead of the front end when preventive and primary care can circumvent expensive treatment later on.

Those who are insured pay premiums that are 17 percent higher to help pay for the costs of the uninsured. This means that many employers actually subsidize care for their competitors.

We can do better as a society.

That is why the United Way has convened a group of 130 business, community and legislative leaders to address the financial challenges facing Utah's middle class. They will release provisional recommendations to reform Utah's health system and seek public comment on the ideas. As Utah's largest business association, the Salt Lake Chamber heartily endorses the work of the United Way.