Many Experts Say Health-Care System Inefficient, Wasteful, By Ceci Connolly, Washington Post Staff Writer, Sunday, November 30, 2008; Page A01

Yet among physicians, insurers, academics and corporate executives from across the ideological spectrum, there is remarkably broad consensus on what ought to be done.

A high-performance 21st-century health system, they say, must revolve around the central goal of paying for results.

With those sorts of variations, the Dartmouth team concluded that as much as 30 percent of medical spending — or $700 billion — does nothing to improve care.

Note that any traditionally managed “system” (e.g., finance, government, defense, auto manufacturing, etc.,) has a cost of poor quality that can range from 20-40% of total budget or sales and any system (including the U.S. Political system) can be improved through a focus on “outcomes.”

A “traditionally managed system” is one in which the leaders/managers have no understanding of variation.

5 Myths About Our Ailing Health-Care System, By Shannon Brownlee and Ezekiel Emanuel, Washington Post, Sunday, November 23, 2008; Page B03

1. America has the best health care in the world.

2. Somebody else is paying for your health insurance

3. We would save a lot if we could cut the administrative waste of private insurance.

4. Health–care reform is going to cost a bundle.

5. Americans aren’t ready for a major overhaul of the health-care system.