Health Reform in the House | Fact of the Day The House health insurance reform legislation prohibits new plans from charging women more than men for health insurance. | | Follow Health Insurance Reform
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At The Time This Daily Dose Was Sent, Insured Americans Had Paid a “Hidden Tax” of $33,034,499,621 This Year In Additional Premium Costs To Cover Care For The Uninsured. Under the Microscope Working Toward Reform Today House Democrats are going to hold another Caucus meeting on health insurance reform, this time on Prevention and Wellness provisions. The American Cancer Society Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association and Karen Pollitz from Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute will be at tonight’s meeting. Another Caucus meeting is scheduled for tomorrow. Also today, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, along with other Members of the Maryland delegation – Assistant to the Speaker Chris Van Hollen, and Representatives Elijah Cummings and Donna Edwards – joined Maryland Black Mayors, the National Conference of Black Mayors, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, AARP Maryland, and the National Black Leadership Forum to discuss the urgent need for health insurance reform. The group highlighted a recent study done by Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, which found that the cost of not addressing inequalities in the health care system cost the United States economy $1.24 trillion between 2003 and 2006. Later this week DHHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is also scheduled to meet with conservative House Republicans in the Capitol. Prominent Republicans For Health Insurance Reform Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tommy Thompson, Bill Frist, Mark McClellan and Bob Dole have all weighed into the debate in recent days to call on Congressional Republicans to join the health insurance reform effort. Independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg has also made the call for reform. The conservative cries for reform don’t end there. In case you missed this one, The Dallas Morning News – which endorsed both John McCain and George Bush for President – gives Republicans a firm rebuke for their wholesale opposition to reform. Read more stories on Republican views on health insurance reform in today’s Headlines and view this document on the subject.
Health Care Headlines How Health Care Reforms Would Affect Medicare
Controlling the rising costs of Medicare doesn’t mean cutting benefits. [AARP Bulletin, 9/18/2009] Democrats Try to Balance Cost and Coverage in Health Plan
As Democrats prepare to take up health care legislation on the floor of the Senate and the House, they are facing tough choices about two competing priorities. [New York Times, 10/6/09] U.S. Losing Ground on Preventable Deaths
As Congress presses forward with landmark legislation to revamp the nation's health-care system, lawmakers are grappling with a troubling question: Are Americans dying too soon? The answer is yes.
[Washington Post, 10/6/2009] A Self-Employed Family's Quest For Insurance
As part of the ongoing series, "Are You Covered?" Cindy Richards and her husband Scott Fisher are profiled at their home in Oak Park, Ill. Richards is a freelance writer and editor who buys health insurance to cover herself and her family. [NPR, 10/6/2009]
Related content includes the Individual Market Explained and a video, Buying Insurance On The Individual Market. Health Insurance Exchanges: Will They Work?
It is the sleeper issue in the current health care debate. Despite all the disagreement in Washington, every proposal now before Congress to overhaul the nation’s health care system includes creation of an insurance “exchange” — a marketplace that would operate something like a Travelocity Web site for insurance policies. [New York Times, 10/6/2009] That'll Be $418 For Use of the Examining Room
'Facility Fees' are taking many patients by surprise. Kathy Young, the veteran benefits administrator for a large plumbing supply company headquartered in Madison, Wis., is well versed in the often fiendish complexities of medical bills. [Washington Post, 10/6/2009] For Kilroy, MS Makes The Message Stronger
As the health care debate rages on, [Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (D-OH)] has decided to use her personal story to help fellow lawmakers understand how important it is to make health care available for all Americans. In a “Dear Colleague” letter she sent last week, Kilroy told them about her own diagnosis. [Roll Call, 10/6/2009] Black, Latino Groups Unite On Health Overhaul Ad Campaign
Asserting that coverage of the August town hall meetings gave a distorted picture of where the public really stands, leading African-American and Latino groups announced a first-of-its kind ad campaign Monday calling for a final push to overhaul health care, with a particular emphasis on including a public plan option.
[CQ HealthBeat, 10/5/2009] Growing Number of GOP Leaders Encourage Health Reform
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday became the most prominent elected Republican to urge Congress to complete work on health-care reform, departing from the widely held GOP view that lawmakers should scrap the current process and start over again. [Washington Post, 10/6/2009] EDITORIAL: The Politics Of Health Care Reform
The politics of health care reform are treacherous. Ask former President Bill Clinton, who saw his first term crippled after meeting his health care Waterloo, a defeat that led in part to the historical 1994 Republican takeover of Congress. [Dallas Morning News, 10/2/2009] OPINION: Bobby Jindal Embraces The Democratic Plan For Health Care Reform
By Ezra Klein
Bobby Jindal is no stranger to health-care policy -- quite the opposite, in fact. Before resigning from his position as an assistant secretary of Health and Human Services under George W. Bush, virtually his entire governmental experience was in health-care policy. [Washington Post, 10/6/2009] Read a related article. OPINION: The Constitutionality Of Healthcare
By Erwin Chemerinsky
There's nothing illegal about requiring Americans to buy medical insurance. [L.A. Times, 10/6/2009] | 