Central Penn Business Journal - Beeman weighs in on health-insurance issues

America’s system of employer-based health insurance should be revamped to give everyone access to coverage, according to the new top executive at Lancaster General Hospital.
The current system forces people to stay in jobs longer than they might want to because they fear losing their health insurance, said Tom Beeman, who became Lancaster General’s president and chief executive officer in June. Beeman previously led a network of hospitals in Nashville, Tenn. Beeman also thinks the system leaves many people who lose their jobs desperate for affordable coverage.

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“I believe that we have to figure out a mechanism that (allows) everybody to have access to health insurance,” said Beeman, who also leads Lancaster General’s network of health-care facilities throughout Lancaster County “You can do it through a voucher system. We could do it through tax breaks.” Beeman rejects the idea of a national health care system, saying it would be inefficient.
Beeman, 52, met with the Business journal June 24 in his office at Lancaster General Hospital. He discussed Lancaster General’s competition with for-profit hospitals, the hospital’s economicrevitalization efforts and why hospitals should help employers keep workers healthy.
CPBJ: For-profit hospitals are prevalent in the South. Will your experience leading a nonprofit health system in Tennessee help you guide Lancaster General as it competes with two for-profit providers in the county (Lancaster Regional Medical Center and Heart of Lancaster Regional Medical Center)?
Beeman: When I was in Nashville, we had an academic health system, as well as for-profit (hospitals). And I used to say, and I meant this sincerely, that the academic organization was a great competitor because it really pushed me to excellence. The for-profit provider was a good competitor because it pushed me to efficiency. I always thought I had the best of both worlds, and that’s what I dunk we have as an organization here in Lancaster. We have an extraordinarily highlevel organization that has all the benefits that a big teaching hospital could have … But we also have the efficiencies that come from understand ing what the community needs and wants … I hope that my experience in working both collaboratively and competitively with the proprietary hospitals will be useful here.
CPBJ: Lancaster General Hospital is involved in the WellFirst Gold program, an effort to promote workplace wellness in Lancaster County. Should hospitals be more involved in helping companies keep employees healthy?
Beeman: We have an intrinsic responsibility, because of our unique backgrounds in education and health, to help the community stay well. At the end of the day, staying out of hospitals should be everybody’s goal in health care. Regrettably, it’s not the reality, because not everybody accepts full responsibility for their health.
CPBJ: “Personal responsibility” is a buzz phrase among employers trying to reduce their health-insurance costs. What do you think about forcing employees to become more responsible for their health-care spending?
Beeman: Consumers are willing co-conspirators (contributing to rising health-care spending) because they are consumers. Americans consume health care like they consume other things … I do think that co-pays, at least at some level, are appropriate because they really make the employee a co-partner with the provider as well as with the company in that. (Note: Beeman also said technology, competition between providers, and administrative burdens from insurers and government contribute to rising costs.)
CPBJ: While at your previous job, you brought a Catholic hospital together with a Baptist one. Do you have any advice for companies trying to bring different cultures together in the workplace?
Beeman: Unless you’re really upfront and understanding of what the cultures of the organizations are, you won’t be successful. What (I attempted) to do was not to impose one culture on another, but to help define (the culture we wanted to be and move as a group toward that new culture) … I think you have to have patience, respect for individuals. And you have to have a clear-cut vision and keep calling people back to that vision, because that’s the thing that keeps people motivated and keeps moving them.
CPBJ: Your predecessor helped start the James Street Improvement District, an effort to improve Lancasters northwest neighborhood. Will Lancaster General remain committed to economic revitalization?
Beeman: I have a strong belief that this is a vital part of what we’re about. It’s about building community, and we’ can’t serve our broader community if there’s no downtown Lancaster to be part of. Building up our community with our partners like (Franklin & Marshall College) is vital, and I intend to be fully engaged in that effort.
Copyright Journal Publications Inc. Jul 15, 2005
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