Do You Know How to Improve the U.S. Healthcare System? It Could Be Worth $10 Million

The same organizers who have offered millions of dollars to inventors who can shoot a person into space or build a more energy-efficient car are now offering $10 million to whoever can design a better healthcare system.

The Healthcare X Prize, as it is called, would go to whoever can create and implement a healthcare plan that would be put to the test in a trial run in a real-life, small United States community. The winner of the contest will be selected based on the “community health index” achieved by the healthcare plan. Factors such as the ability of people in the community to climb stairs as well as reductions in health costs and emergency-room visits would be evaluated to pick the winner, organizers said.

Finalists to Be Selected for Real-Life Trial Runs

Five finalists will be selected to have their healthcare systems undergo a three-year trial run. The plans should be suitable for a community of 10,000 residents and designed to improve health by 50 percent or more during the trial period, according to organizers.

“We are looking for teams to help individuals and communities proactively improve their own health and (that) of their families,” said Dr. Peter Diamandis, chairman and chief executive of the non-profit X Prize Foundation.

Teams will have 18 months to create and submit their healthcare plans for consideration, officials said.

U.S. Healthcare System in Crisis

Obesity, heart disease, and other health problems are epidemics in the United States and more than 80 percent of Americans believe the nation’s healthcare system needs substantial reform. Despite spending more on healthcare than other nations, the U.S. ranks last among 19 industrialized nations on health outcomes, quality and efficiency, according to a report by the non-profit Commonwealth Fund.

Last year, the United States finished last on preventing death from chronic conditions such as asthma and heart attacks, according to the same report.

American Idol of Healthcare Reform: Why Not?

For years, the idea of instituting real healthcare reform has been tossed around the halls of Washington, D.C. like a political hot potato. So maybe the time has come to turn the enormous chore or reworking the U.S. healthcare system into a type of reality show.

After all, American Idol gave us country music superstar Carrie Underwood. Who knows what masterminds might step forward as part of the Healthcare X Prize competition to offer a workable solution to mending the crippled healthcare system.

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