March 10, 2010

March 10: Health Care Reform News

By Kelley Luckstein

US Senate General Speeches: Senator Jon Kyl, R-Arizona and Senator John Barrasso, R-Wyoming

Mr. Barrasso: I would say to my colleague from Arizona, where there is actually a Mayo Clinic, as there is in Florida and in Minnesota. You would think as the President early on talks about the Mayo Clinic being a model for health care in the country that the Mayo Clinic might agree with what the President had to say. But if you go to the Mayo Clinic’s blog, they say, the proposed legislation misses the opportunity. We have an opportunity now misses the opportunity to help create high-quality, more affordable health care for patients. In fact, it will do the opposite.

CSPAN 2, 3/9/2010 *this link will only be available for 30 days

 

Additional health care reform mentions:

KAAL

BNet

 

 

Top stories

 

Obama Pushing on Health Care End Game

The Washington Post
March 10, 2010

 

President Barack Obama is making his closing arguments for a health care overhaul, pushing a new anti-fraud plan as he cranks up the pressure on skittish Democratic lawmakers to act fast.

 

Health Care’s Obstacle: No Will to Cut
The New York Times
March 10, 2010

 

President Obama’s health reform plan is a mixed bag for those who care about keeping down medical costs.

 

Health Reform Passes the Cost Test

The Wall Street Journal

March 10, 2010

 

David Cuter says the Obama plan will cut costs — $600 billion over the next decade — and asks, why walk away from it?

 

Business Buys Ads vs. Health Overhaul

The Wall Street Journal
March 10, 2010

 

Some of the largest U.S. business groups announced a multimillion-dollar television advertising campaign aimed at defeating the Democrats' pending healthcare legislation.

 

Related:

Obama’s Health-Care Push Gets Challenge From Business Coalition , Bloomberg

Insurers Hit Back Against Dems With New Ad, Politico

 

Parliamentary Hurdle Could Thwart Latest Health Care Overhaul Strategy

The New York Times
March 10, 2010

 

The White House and Democratic Congressional leaders said Tuesday that they were bracing for a key procedural ruling that could complicate their effort to approve major health care legislation, by requiring President Obama to sign the bill into law before Congress could revise it through an expedited budget process.

 

Transparency/Safety

 

With Warning, a Hip Device Is Withdrawn

The New York Times
March 10, 2010

 

Just months after saying it was phasing out an artificial hip implant because of slowing sales, a unit of Johnson & Johnson has warned doctors that the device appears to have a high early failure rate in some patients.

 

Few Drug Studies Meet Comparative Effectiveness Designation

The Boston Globe

March 10, 2010

 

Dr. Michael Hochman and Dr. Danny McCormick report that only about a third of 328 studies published in six top medical journals from June 2008 through September 2009 met the definition of comparative effectiveness.

 

Wellness/Chronic Care

 

New Tool Lets Patients Call the Shots at End of Their Lives

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune
March 10, 2010

 

A new medical document – Provider Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment —allows patients to tell their family and doctors exactly what kind of care they want at the end of life. The directive is slowly being adopted at hospitals, nursing homes, and hospices as part of a groundswell within the medical community to give terminally ill patients more control over how and where they die.

 

State news

 

FL: Jackson Health System Leaders Warn of Insolvency Without County Loan

The Miami Herald

March 10, 2010

 

Miami-based Jackson Health System is close to insolvency and facing the specter of having one of its major vendors shut off supplies unless the company receives a $1 million payment this week. Unless Miami-Dade County advances Jackson $67 million, interim Chief Financial Officer Christopher Bayer said, the institution would be down to 1.5 days cash on hand by April 5.

 

Few Californians Benefiting From Rescission Settlements

The Los Angeles Times
March 10, 2010

 

Report finds that fewer than 300 of 6,000 former policyholders who were dropped after they became ill are participating in health insurers' agreements to settle such cases.

 

Medicare/Medicaid

 

Obama Announces Effort to Crack Down on Medicare and Medicaid Fraud

Politico
March 9, 2010

 

President Barack Obama tonight announced a plan to crack down on fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid ahead of his remarks on health reform in St. Charles, Missouri on Wednesday. Related: Kaiser Health News asks and answers Five Questions About President Obama's Proposed Changes To The Medicare Payroll Tax.

 

Reform efforts

 

Democrats: No Thanks to New 'Gang of 14'

Politico
March 10, 2010

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) wants to revive the bipartisan Gang of 14 — this time for health care reform, not judicial nominees. But most of his moderate Democratic colleagues aren’t rushing to R.S.V.P.

On Health-Care Reform, Republicans Target Democrats' Division Over Reconciliation

The Washington Post
March 10, 2010

 

As Republicans work to prevent a health-care bill from reaching President Obama, they are scrambling to exploit divisions between Democrats in the House and the Senate.

 

GOP plan: Play on Blue Dogs' nerves

Politico
March 10, 2010

When Mitch McConnell speaks these days, he expects House Blue Dogs to be listening. It’s not that the Senate minority leader imagines himself to be E.F. Hutton, but he’s very much part of a newly launched Republican shadow war to block health care reform by playing on the nerves of wavering Democrats across the Capitol.

Thousands Rally to Support Health-Care Reform in Downtown Washington

The Washington Post

March 10, 2010

 

Thousands of protesters marched through downtown Washington, DC, to criticize the health insurance industry and attempt to draw support for the Democratic proposal to overhaul the system.

 

AP-GfK Poll: Public wants elusive accord on health

AP/Google News

March 10, 2010

 

More than four in five Americans say it's important that any health care plan have support from both parties. And 68 percent say the president and congressional Democrats should keep trying to cut a deal with Republicans rather than pass a bill with no GOP support.

 

Lincoln Opposes Fast-Track Health Bill

AP/The Washington Times
March 9, 2010

 

A moderate Democrat insisted Tuesday she remained opposed to pushing a health care bill through the Senate with a simple majority vote, despite saying she wanted to see what was in the legislation.

 

Miscellaneous

 

Cost Of Medical School Rises In Recession

NPR
March 10, 2010

 

A report on the high cost of medical school, focusing on one student, Sarah Rosen. The interest rate on her school loans shot up to eight and a half percent, almost twice the rate her parents are paying after refinancing their mortgage.

Tags: health care reform, Health Policy, Health Policy

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