NO QUICK FIX ON MANAGED CARE

A special legislative committee held five days of hearings last week in Jefferson City on the subject of managed health care. The 10-member committee heard from 150 witnesses on all aspects of the controversial topic. They heard from witnesses who said no changes are needed in this area of the evolving health-care marketplace, and from others, physicians mostly, who strongly argue that quality care is severely compromised by managed care.

The committee was inundated with testimony and written materials. Some members will spend much of the fall trying to digest what they heard and reading still more. Out of all this, recommendations for legislation may be forthcoming.

Doubtless there will be some of these that have merit, others that are ill-advised. As they consider what they heard, lawmakers should consider the admonition from the Hippocratic Oath for physicians: "First, do no harm." The health care marketplace is evolving, introducing market-driven measures to try to control costs. These efforts are beginning to show considerable progress in containing health care costs. Better they should be allowed to continue before lawmakers rush in with a quick fix.