"We need to look at cost, quality of care and access," said Sen. Gene Davis, D-Salt Lake City. "And at this point, I'm not opposed to the idea that we don't have to do anything. Whatever we do, this is going to be a challenge."

During the last legislative session, lawmakers blasted Intermountain Health Care for aggressive collection tactics and punitive insurance policies. Some lawmakers insisted that if IHC operates like a for-profit company, it should be taxed like one.

Instead, lawmakers created a task force to consider several health-care issues, including taxing IHC or forcing it to unload its insurance business.

"IHC has indicated that they consider health care a right not a privilege," said Davis. "But that's not IHC's insurance-side talking."

Sen. Michael Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, said while the task force will investigate IHC's business practices, problems involving health care are so complex that he doubts anyone has answers.

"This meeting made some people uncomfortable on both sides of the issue," said Waddoups, task force co-chairman. "That's what happens when you try to put a solution together."

Said Rep. James Dunnigan, R-Taylorsville: "There's a lot of statistics, positions and comments out there. We need good research so we can determine what the facts are. We've got to find a way to improve health-care delivery and pricing, being careful we don't make worse or destroy the system we already have."

Sen. Ed Mayne, D-West Valley City, said he believes committee members will spend this year "listening to all sides and studying some pretty heavy issues. I don't see us coming up with recommendations until next year."

Reports are expected to be completed this fall and in November 2006, when the 15-member Privately Owned Health Care Organization Task Force is scheduled to disband.

Weeks before this first meeting, IHC promised to stop using court orders to collect unpaid medical bills unless there is evidence of fraud or someone has money and refuses to pay. IHC also dropped interest rates on patients' payment plans from 14.5 percent to 8 percent and agreed not to charge interest on bills for some low-income patients.

dawn@sltrib.com