Disease prevention programs cannot reduce costs in long term, columnist writes

Jul 23 2008

The "formulation" that disease prevention programs can reduce health care costs in the long term "is a pleasant fantasy," syndicated columnist Froma Harrop writes in the Providence Journal.

According to Harrop, "in the interests of honest accounting," economists maintain that "prevention does not reduce overall health care spending," as longer lives "cost money." She writes, "Everyone dies of something," and, "even for those in relative good health," individuals who live longer can require additional CT scans, hip replacements, physical therapy and other health care services.

"Despite this reality, the cost-saving virtues of wellness programs echo along the presidential campaign trail," as both major presidential candidates include "prevention" in their health care proposals," Harrop writes. She adds, "Companies that include wellness programs in their employee benefits ... delay the onset of serious illness during the employees' working years and pass it onto to Medicare, when the taxpayers take over."

Preventive care "is a good thing because a long and healthy life is a good thing," Harrop writes, adding, "[b]ut let's not deceive ourselves into believing that wellness programs can reduce medical spending over the long haul." She concludes, "That may come off as an attractive selling point for a health care plan, but it's not so" (Harrop, Providence Journal, 7/21).