HSACoop

http://www.hsacoop.com/index.html

HSACoop was founded in 2005 by Rene Umali MD, a general surgeon, after he began looking at the possibility of pooling Heath Savings Accounts (HSAs) in order to buy a specific hospital that had recently closed in Los Angeles. This idea, however, soon grew into a national campaign that expands this project into buying hospitals and other healthcare systems nationwide and, thereby, creating an unprecedented “people owned [and thereby controlled] healthcare system.” Its motto is “Healthcare of the people, by the people, for the people.” HSACoop proposes 5 simple steps to accomplish this goal:

1. Convince as many people to open HSAs
2. Pool their HSAs into a massive fund
3. Create our own national credit union
4. Start buying hospitals and other healthcare systems
5. Create our own health and malpractice insurance
The project is based on USC 26, section 223(d)(1)(D) which clearly states: “The assets of the trust will not be commingled with other property except in a common trust fund or common investment fund”

In 2005, the executive summary of this project was submitted to various top HSA think tank groups in the country, including Pacific Research Institute, HSAtrusteeservices.com, Heritage Foundation, etc, as well as various HSA attorneys, banks, and HSA consultants like Roy Ranthum (senior healthcare advisor to former President GW Bush) for their review. All agreed that this has never been done before but is completely legal and an allowable use of HSAs, and further that the concept could revolutionize the healthcare industry towards the appropriate centerpiece of consumer directed healthcare. Because of an incident in one of Dr. Umali’s hospitals (which proved the need for “system wide” healthcare reform), Dr. Umali was forced to close his surgical private practice in Los Angeles. He move to Redding California where he now resides. As a result, HSACoop was put on hold but was re-started in 2009 during this Administrations push for “universal healthcare” and government takeover of medicine which is completely opposite to the HSACoop proposal. HSACoop is a truly free-market based solution to healthcare reform.

Since early 2009, Dr. Umali has essentially retired from direct patient care to devout his career to the HSACoop project and national healthcare reform. HSACoop opened a web site (HSACoop.com) and instituted an informal board. HSACoop also started a sub-organization called The American Center for Peer Review and Licensing Justice (ACPRLJ) as a necessary and integral part of healthcare reform. ACPRLJ focuses on the injustices committed by peer review and licensing boards.

HSACoop participated in the MillionMedMarch and Docs4patient care rally in Washington DC on 10/1/09. Dr. Umali was also lead organizer in California for a simultaneous rally in 20 cities nationwide on 11/21/09. HSACoop is currently working with various medical associations and grassroots organizations such as the Tea Party and 9/12 groups to effectuate healthcare reform and to provide funding for national reform goals.

HSACoop is currently seeking funding to develop the necessary infrastructure (a credit union, common trust fund, common investment fund, online banking software, and an insurance company, etc). Dr. Umali is available for lectures on this subject.