Now that he has been tapped to be the head of the mammoth Department of Health and Human Services, balance is the only way to go. It is a huge job that should be made more manageable by the fact that people are increasingly aware of the need for a new way of doing things.
On environmental issues, Leavitt's “enlibra” philosophy meant trying to find a middle ground between the preservation of a healthy environment and the interests of extractive businesses such as mining, oil drilling and, when it's done badly, agriculture.
That was a hard task, politically, because people on both sides of that issue are seldom disposed to accept compromise. Environmentalists often see anything but the deftest touch of humanity as an irreparable wound, while advocates of the extractive economy frequently seem to know only that people have to make a living right now.
But when it comes to health, a broad issue that includes everything from the cost of medical care to the safety of our food supply, meeting the needs of all concerned might actually be an easier task.
Though nobody has ever argued to the contrary, it is increasingly clear that the health of the individual and the health of the larger society are not in conflict. The lesson learned from having beaten history's most horrible communicable diseases, a lesson that still has value as we face new plagues such as AIDS and growing threats from old menaces such as heart disease and diabetes, is that both private conduct and public policy must be correct in order to maintain health.
For the old diseases it was simply hygiene first - modern plumbing and knowledge of germs - then vaccinations and treatment with antibiotics and other wonder drugs. For the new ones, basic hygiene still counts, which these days also means proper diet and sufficient exercise. So does environmental health, not just sewage systems and the ban on the common cup at the town well, but public review of the stuff they put into our air, our water and our food.
The health of each person matters to every person, not just for humane reasons but also because of how we are all tied together in health insurance pools both public and private. That's why one of Leavitt's primary goals is to make health insurance affordable for more people.
Reducing those costs won't just help individuals. The trend in health care costs will make or break both private companies and governments of all levels, which simply cannot afford to continue siphoning off so much profit or so many tax dollars. Something must be done.
Over to you, Mr. Secretary.
