U.S. Health Care: Resolving the Quagmire

The following excerpts are from chapter one of a book in progress by Ron Robins, tentatively titled, Resolving America’s Economic Quagmire… individuals gaining inner fulfillment is the key*

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“These [Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid] and other projected expenditures… have produced, not a fiscal cliff, but a fiscal abyss.”

—Professor Laurence J. Kotlikoff, Boston University.


Overview (Excerpt)
“Professor Kotlikoff calculates this fiscal abyss of the U.S. Federal Government as an astounding unfunded liability of $205 trillion. It equals a current debt of about $665,000 for every living American adult and child. And most of this sum pertains to health care. The health care costs quagmire poses a financial deathblow to the U.S. economy and its citizens. To avert this calamity, America’s health care system will be revamped.

Notwithstanding Obamacare, one way will be to re-organize the health care system according to well-studied methodologies that show huge potential cost savings. While another way—garnering increasing attention—is by utilizing scientifically validated disease prevention interventions such as the Transcendental Meditation (TM) program. Also, many political leaders, economists and others, believe there will need to be substantial reductions in health care benefits as well.

Interestingly, by deploying the known methodologies and interventions inferred to above and written about below, it might not be necessary to reduce benefits yet still be able to cut health care costs a stunning 50-80 per cent!”

Major health care cost drivers. Reducing their cost through health system reform and introduction of the Transcendental Meditation disease prevention program (Excerpt)
“The major health care cost drivers are:
The increasing incidence of chronic disease in an aging population
Relatively fewer workers to pay for increasing costs
Exceptionally high professional fees relative to other developed countries
Huge oversupply of services, equipment
Administration costs and fraud

Now we look at these issues one by one, and where appropriate, determine the role that individual TM practice can play in reducing their costs.”


The increasing incidence of chronic disease in an aging population (Excerpt)
“Over half of Americans have chronic diseases. Yet, despite significant improvements in treatments for chronic diseases, their incidence and related financial costs continue rising dramatically.

Actual costs of America’s seven most common chronic diseases—cancer, diabetes, hypertension, stroke, heart disease, pulmonary conditions and mental disorders—have been estimated at $1.3 trillion annually by Ross DeVol and colleagues, or about 10 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). Their unique and original study quantified almost all related costs to employers, governments, and to the U.S economy. They say those costs could reach $4.2 trillion by 2023.

Numerous researchers cite the growing incidence of chronic disease as mostly due to aging. However, many in the medical field also believe that more important than aging are the unhealthy lifestyles, diets, and behaviors of most Americans. And this is another area where the TM practice can be highly beneficial. Aside from its well-documented physical health benefits, TM creates an ‘inner fulfillment and self-sufficiency’ that alleviates the desire for the kind of instant gratification (with bad lifestyles, diets, etc.) that cause much chronic disease.

The first major study demonstrating the effectiveness of the TM practice in reducing chronic disease (and overall illness) was by Dr. David Orme-Johnson in 1987. Using Blue Cross/Blue Shield data, Dr. Johnson found an average 50% reduction in medical utilization in all 16 major disease categories studied among subjects practicing TM as compared to matched controls.

As the elderly are responsible disproportionately for health care costs, some researchers suggest they be particularly encouraged to practice TM. One leading researcher on health care costs, Dr. Robert Herron, wrote about this in the Huffington Post on July 13, 2012. Dr. Herron remarked–on a study he did–that, ‘In the Medicare population… the highest spending 25 percent of seniors accounted for 85 percent of total expenses’ and that there was ‘a 28 percent reduction in doctors’ bills over five years from baseline for persistent high-cost people who practiced the TM technique.’”

Read it all here.