Health Reform in the House | Fact of the Day H.R. 3200 provides small businesses with tax credits equal to up to 50 percent of the employer’s share of the cost of purchasing health insurance coverage for employees. | Health Resources |
Under the Microscope STUDY: Using Clinical Information To Project Federal Health Care Spending
Complications from chronic illnesses often do not emerge for many years. Current federal cost projection methods are constrained by ten-year cost estimates, which capture increases in near-term intervention costs but not changes in long-term costs. Current methods also cannot easily capture the cost implications of changes in disease progression. Type 2 diabetes is a prime example of a chronic illness with long-term health and cost consequences. This article presents results from an epidemiologically based model that projects federal costs for diabetes under alternative policies, and discusses the potential changes in the federal budget process needed to capture the full impact of these interventions. [Health Affairs, 9/1/2009] Read coverage of this model from The Washington Post, NPR, and Reuters. Read a related op-ed piece here.
Health Care Headlines White House Fires Back at Sen. Enzi
The White House criticized Republican Sen. Mike Enzi Monday for walking away from bipartisan healthcare talks.
[The Hill, 9/1/2009] House Investigators Target Six Health Insurance Companies For Additional Data
Two House committees asked six large health insurance companies for information about the “purging” of small businesses from their plans. [The Hill, 9/1/2009] Labor Leaders Call On Congress to Pass Healthcare Reform for Sen. Kennedy
Labor leaders on Monday called on Congress to pass healthcare reform legislation in honor of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy. [The Hill, 8/31/2009] Grassely Under Fire for Opposition to Public Option
A Democratic interest group on Monday launched a television ad campaign targeting Senate Finance ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) over his opposition to a public insurance option, signaling that the fight over health care reform is far from over. [Roll Call, 9/1/2009] New Calif. Rules Cut Wait Times For Medical Care
Many Americans who have private health coverage must wait to see their family doctor or a specialist, or to schedule surgery. California regulators say the problem is so bad that the state will soon set limits on how long those waits can be. It's the first such effort in the United States. [NPR, 8/31/2009] 1 In 7 Californians Have Medical Debt Study Finds
Much of the national discussion on health care has focused on the need to expand coverage to those without insurance. But a new study from the U.C.L.A. Center for Health Policy Research underscores the limits of the current system in protecting even insured people from the financial risk of being sick.
[New York Times, 9/1/2009] Debit Cards Reward Medicaid Patients For Care
Some Indiana Medicaid patients can now earn money to spend on health care simply by visiting the doctor or seeking routine preventive care. [Associated Press, 9/1/2009] The Biggest Lies in the Health Care Debate
To the credit of opponents of health-care reform, the lies and exaggerations they're spreading are not made up out of whole cloth—which makes the misinformation that much more credible. Instead, because opponents demand that everyone within earshot (or e-mail range) look, say, "at page 425 of the House bill!," the lies take on a patina of credibility. [Newsweek, 8/29/2009] OPINION: Obama's Health Care Realism
Norman J. Ornstein, resident scholar, American Enterprise Institute
While health reform is far from a done deal -- and could still be derailed by the lack of a vote to replace that of Sen. Ted Kennedy, an economic double dip or an international crisis -- the issue is actually on a fairly predictable path that fits both the realities of public opinion and politics in an age of sharp partisan and ideological conflict. [Washington Post, 9/1/2009] OPINION: Healthcare Needs a Clear Message
Mark Penn, CEO of Burson-Marsteller and Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates; pollster & advisor to the Clintons
The Obama administration’s health care reform efforts are spinning out of control, and the White House is taking on water, seeing its ratings fall and its leadership questioned. For a president whose communication skills are so justifiably well-regarded, the biggest obstacle comes as a surprise: the need for a clear and simple message of how his team’s version of health care reform will benefit ordinary Americans.
[Politico, 9/1/2009] |