January 8: Health Care Reform News
TOP STORIES
The Wall Street Journal
January 8, 2010
The real Mayo story is that sclerotic Medicare is preventing more Mayos and ObamaCare is paving the way for all of health care to operate like Medicare.
House Democrats Confer on Health Care Reform
The Washington Post
January 8, 2010
With Senate Democrats barely able to muster the 60 votes necessary to pass their own bill and President Obama leaning toward the Senate's position on some key issues, House Democrats are increasingly concerned that they could be marginalized at the bargaining table.
Talking Taxes: Unions, Obama to Discuss Taxing Health Plans
The Wall Street Journal
January 8, 2010
President Barack Obama has made clear that, like the Senate, he favors a tax on high-end health insurance plans. In the coming days, union leaders who fiercely oppose that idea will get their chance to talk him out of it.
INSURANCE
Battle Over “Exchanges” Regulator
The Wall Street Journal
January 8, 2010
Health insurers are girding for a fight over who should regulate the new marketplaces that would sell policies to 30 million Americans under the health care bills pending in Congress.
TRANSPARENCY/SAFETY
Health Care Overhaul Could Save Money and Boost Jobs, Researchers Say
The Los Angeles Times
January 8, 2010
National health care legislation in Congress could slow the growth of medical costs, allowing employers to create 250,000 to 400,000 new jobs a year over the next decade, economists from Harvard University and USC are predicting.
Health Care Created 267,000 New Jobs in 2009
Healthleaders Media
January 8, 2010
The health care sector created 267,000 new jobs in 2009, including 22,000 payroll additions in December.
STATE NEWS
Executives Snub Massachusetts Hearing on Rising Health Care Costs
The Boston Globe
January 8, 2010
Leaders of some of the Massachusetts' largest hospitals failed to show up at a public hearing to answer state regulators' questions about what is driving up health care costs.
Ingenix Offers Doctors No-Interest Loans for EMRs
The Minneapolis Star Tribune
January 8, 2010
Hoping to get a jump on the fast-growing market for electronic medical records, Ingenix Inc., the data and technology arm of UnitedHealth, is offering interest-free loans to doctors' practices that choose its CareTracker product.
MEDICARE/MEDICAID
Dems Weigh Payroll Tax to Pay for Health Plan
The Washington Examiner
January 8, 2010
As the House and Senate negotiate a final health care bill, they are setting their sights on raising the Medicare payroll tax on high-income earners as a way to bridge a disagreement over who should pay for the trillion-dollar legislation.
REFORM EFFORTS
Health Bill May Combine Millionaire and ‘Cadillac’ Taxes
The Hill
January 8, 2010
The chairman of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Health, said leaders may use the Millionaire and ‘Cadillac’ taxes in tandem to finance the final legislation, the cost of which will be hundreds of billions of dollars.
First Universal Coverage: Then a New Framework
Kaiser Permanente
January 8, 2010
Kaiser Permanente CEO George Halvorson outlines the consecutive steps we need to take to arrive at a perfect system.
Administration Enlists Dem Governors on Health Care
Politico
January 8, 2010
With a bill on the brink of passage, the White House is hoping to present a united Democratic front to help beat back the increasingly sharp attacks from Schwarzenegger and other Republican governors.
On Health Care Bill: Nelson to Fight For All States
The New York Times
January 8, 2010
In a statement on Thursday, Mr. Nelson said he would fight for all states to get the same benefits as Nebraska, a move that some of his Senate colleagues had predicted as inevitable.
Buffett Defends Nelson, Health Care Reform
Journal Star
January 7, 2010
Warren Buffett said Thursday he'd have voted for the Senate's health care reform bill, and Sen. Ben Nelson was courageous to do so.
NEW ADMINISTRATION
Lieberman’s Approval Rating Tanks in Connecticut
The Huffington Post
January 8, 2010
Sen. Joseph Lieberman's role in upending health care negotiations is costing him dearly at home.
Health Care Views Hurt Dorgan’s Bid
The Wall Street Journal
January 8, 2010
Democratic Sen. Byron Dorgan faced political peril in his re-election bid because he was closely associated with Washington and policies being crafted there, in particular the health care overhaul.
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