Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal, who is a Republican, wants to introduce market-based reforms to save his state’s Medicaid program:

Gov. Bobby Jindal on Friday proposed restructuring Louisiana’s health-care program for the poor into a private insurance model that relies on managed-care principles to control costs and improve health outcomes.

And why are these reforms needed?

The state’s Medicaid program … is on an unsustainable financial path. Whereas the program consumed about 8.5 percent of the general fund budget in 2006, it is projected to take up 21 percent by 2011, the governor said.

Jindal’s approach differs pretty dramatically from the Democrat strategy of doing nothing to avert the impending financial meltdown of Medicare.

Maybe we need this guy in Washington.