Obama Should Tap Personalized Medicine Tools, Leavitt Says
By John Lauerman
Nov. 14 (Bloomberg) -- President-elect Barack Obama should explore tools of personalized medicine, such as genetic tests and online health records, to mend the U.S. health-care system, said Michael Leavitt, the outgoing health secretary.
Personalized health care should be an ``explicit goal of health care reform,'' Leavitt said today in a report that he called a ``note on the desk'' to his successor.
Obama has promised to make affordable health coverage available to everyone, using government subsidies, information technology and a requirement that insurers can't turn anyone down based on their medical history. Leavitt, an appointee of President George W. Bush, said measures to reduce waste and overuse of drugs and health resources are key to curbing out-of- control costs and promoting access.
``Every American needs health insurance,'' Leavitt said today in a speech at Harvard Medical School in Boston, where his report was released. ``It will be a hollow victory if we have insurance available to everyone that no one can afford.''
As a senator from Illinois serving on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Obama sponsored the Genomics and Personalized Medicine Act of 2007. The bill was aimed at accelerating genetic research and regulating DNA testing.
Medco Health Solutions Inc., the biggest U.S. manager of drug benefits, is experimenting with using gene tests to adjust dosing of blood thinners. Pfizer Inc., the world's biggest drugmaker, sells an AIDS drug that can be used only after a test. Google Inc. and other Web site operators sell or provide programs allowing people to keep their health records online.
Patients should ask their doctors whether they maintain electronic records and make use of personalized tests and information when possible, Leavitt said in a prologue to the report released today. It was based on the findings of a meeting held earlier this year in Utah, where Leavitt was formerly governor.
Obama's Support
During the presidential campaign, Obama backed a move to electronic medical records to give doctors ``easy access to all the necessary information about their patients'' and ``reduce costly medical errors.''
New approaches are needed to curb U.S. spending on health care, which represents about 16 percent of the gross domestic product, Leavitt said. High health costs and debt are discouraging investment in the U.S., he said.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat, laid out a health-care overhaul plan this week that is similar to Obama's proposals except that it would eventually require all Americans to have health coverage. Leavitt declined to comment on the Baucus proposal, saying he was unfamiliar with its details.
To contact the reporter on this story: John Lauerman in Boston at jlauerman@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: November 14, 2008 13:53 EST
