Nearly 100 doctors and medical students from across the state packed the second floor of the Tempe campus’ Memorial Union over the weekend to attend nearly a dozen speeches, debates and displays.

Dr. Allan Markus, director of ASU Campus Health Services, said that he has been planning the 2008 meeting of the American College of Physicians' Arizona chapter for the past two years.

Markus opened the conference Saturday morning by taking the stage in the MU’s Arizona Room, wearing a fire helmet in a comedic reference to his relief that the union was open for business following the November 2007 fire that shut down the building.

The conference is a forum for medical professionals to share, learn and discuss contemporary issues in the field of medicine.

Topics ranged from whether or not opiates should be used in treating fibromyalgia to a debate on the future of health care.

“We want to educate physicians of Arizona on the future of health care and give them the best modern, scientific evidence to take care of patients in Arizona,” Markus said.

The opening debate on the future of health care in America featured Newt Gingrich, former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and founder of the Center for Health Transformation, appearing in a video feed.

Gingrich warned that moving to a large national health care system would create more bureaucracy in dealing with life-and-death issues.

“The Germans do reasonably well with bureaucracy. You can argue that the British will put up with inconvenience and long waiting lines,” Gingrich said. “We’re not a very good country in dealing with bureaucracy. We didn’t do a good job with rescuing people in Katrina, we haven’t done a good job finding 10 to 20 million people here illegally, and we certainly haven’t done a good job monitoring Wall Street.”

Gingrich said that these factors make him wonder how successful the U.S. would be at building a large, national, bureaucratic health care system.

“The current system is a mess,” Gingrich said.

Gingrich’s solution includes the use of vouchers and tax credits to make sure that every citizen is covered.

Dr. Oliver Fein, president-elect of Physicians for a National Health Program, argued the counterpoint.

“The time has come for a national health insurance program in the U.S.,” Fein said.

Fein’s plan for universal coverage includes free health care for people here illegally, and he warned the audience to pay attention to the difference between resident and citizen.

The conference also included displays of recent medical studies ranging from heart surgery and blood transfusion to knee effusion in a quadriplegic man.

Displays of nearly 30 studies covered the walls surrounding a room full of representatives from about 20 pharmaceutical companies and insurance providers like King Pharmaceutical and Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Debates and discussions went on throughout the day on Saturday and Sunday. The ballroom had nearly 45 tables, and each seat was equipped with a game show-style voting device that allowed the audience to vote on questions posed by the speakers.

According to one instantaneous poll, Markus said that to the surprise of many in the medical field, malpractice suits are not the biggest concern to physicians.

“Physicians say that the rising cost of fees is the biggest concern of doctors in Arizona,” Markus said.

Reach the reporter at jaking5@asu.edu.