Spring Break
Senator seeks advice from pharmacy students, faculty concerning RI health care
Hillary Brady
Issue date: 4/21/09 Section: Campus
04/21/09 - One of the many hot button issues facing the presidential administration is the health care system. With millions of Americans remaining uninsured, the problem of restructuring the broken system has fallen upon United States senators, including Rhode Island's Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI).
On Friday afternoon, Whitehouse came to seek advice from University of Rhode Island pharmacy students about the ongoing health care reform.
"We're headed for a pretty significant meltdown," Whitehouse said to the roundtable of 12 students and professors. "Health care is the biggest concern by far. It is a really, really grave situation."
He described the system as a "toolbox." The "toolbox" that needs to be created, Whitehouse explained, is one that builds an informational infrastructure, and focuses on quality improvement, interventions and wellness. The current American health care system, he said, is a "bloody, old toolbox."
In an eight to 10 year range, Whitehouse describes a "tsunami" of impending health care problems, with baby-boomers aging in significant numbers. With this oncoming wave of Americans needing health care, it is uncertain if the infrastructure of the current health care system will be able to handle this.
However, the government is looking into changing these outdated policies - a move which may create political strife.
"We're heading into the system, but we're going to relive all that political warfare," Whitehouse said. "Any time money is involved, politics is right behind."
Whitehouse is one of leaders working on the issue, along with a bipartisan group of fellow senators.
"He is actually involved in the debate as a role in the committee," Alex Swartsel, Whitehouse's spokeswoman, said. "He's held dozens of meetings with advocacy groups to talk about health care."
One of the first topics up for discussion between Whitehouse and the URI students was President Obama's summit, the White House Forum on Health Reform.
On Friday afternoon, Whitehouse came to seek advice from University of Rhode Island pharmacy students about the ongoing health care reform.
"We're headed for a pretty significant meltdown," Whitehouse said to the roundtable of 12 students and professors. "Health care is the biggest concern by far. It is a really, really grave situation."
He described the system as a "toolbox." The "toolbox" that needs to be created, Whitehouse explained, is one that builds an informational infrastructure, and focuses on quality improvement, interventions and wellness. The current American health care system, he said, is a "bloody, old toolbox."
In an eight to 10 year range, Whitehouse describes a "tsunami" of impending health care problems, with baby-boomers aging in significant numbers. With this oncoming wave of Americans needing health care, it is uncertain if the infrastructure of the current health care system will be able to handle this.
However, the government is looking into changing these outdated policies - a move which may create political strife.
"We're heading into the system, but we're going to relive all that political warfare," Whitehouse said. "Any time money is involved, politics is right behind."
Whitehouse is one of leaders working on the issue, along with a bipartisan group of fellow senators.
"He is actually involved in the debate as a role in the committee," Alex Swartsel, Whitehouse's spokeswoman, said. "He's held dozens of meetings with advocacy groups to talk about health care."
One of the first topics up for discussion between Whitehouse and the URI students was President Obama's summit, the White House Forum on Health Reform.
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