Please politicians, health care business-stakeholders and friends. We need to understand that the traditional and predictable political discussions about health and health care are no longer pertinent. Last century’s monopolistic scopes of practice, exclusive referral systems, rationing of health information, and fees for service that may or may not help are on the way out.

In the high technology age we live in today, all kinds of information and knowledge are instantly and infinitely available for the greater good or not, for all.

Nevertheless this shift from the past century provides abundantly new possibilities, that create changes, that create competition across a broad front, that create new possibilities, that create increased quality and decreased prices.

Politics and public opinion have little to do with the economic and cultural changes that are in place now and that are changing the way we define health and health care.

A system that focuses on failure for the greater good is bound to succeed. Health care focusing on disease, lack of health, is a great example. Focusing on “raising health levels whatever and wherever they may be” is the future. Focusing on disease which we have done for the past 50 years is the past.

James Riford Johnston

Oak Harbor