The newest version of Health Wonk Review is now up over at Richard Eskow's "The Sentinel Effect." It a sample of some of the best posts from the world of health care blogs and worth a read.
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Browse » Home » Archives for May 2007
Drug Reimportation from Canada––The Drug Industry Loves It
Well, the illegal kind of reimportation anyway.For many years we have been debating the issue of drug reimportation--the importation of American drugs from other nation's, such as Canada, at much lower prices which their government-run systems enable their pharmacies to charge.Drug reimportation was never going to be much of a solution to America's high drug price problems--just how many excess
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Giuliani, McCain, and Romney--Where Are Their Health Care Plans?
Looking at the leading Republican candidates for president you wouldn't think health care is much of an issue.In fact, finding anything the top three Republican candidates have said regarding health care is sort of like playing, "Where's Waldo."A recent tour of their official campaign Websites:Rudy Giuliani - Click on "On the Issues" on Giuliani's Website and health care isn't listed as one of
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Clinton, Edwards, Obama--Offering Health Care Reform Proposals More Similar Than Different
In sailboat racing there is a strategy called "covering." It means that when your competitor makes a move you make exactly the same move. That way, you have covered their every move and they can't get away from you because of any new tactic they aim to employ.When you "cover" you intentionally stay even during that phase of the race--you have no intention of getting ahead at that point.On health
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Hillary Clinton Outlines the First Elements of Her Health Care Reform Plan
Hillary Clinton took the first steps in outlining her health care reform platform this week. This time focusing on the underlying problem in the health care system--costs.They were just first steps, fairly vague and hardly controversial.We hear that she will deliver two more speeches in the future outlining her thinking on quality and insurance coverage.This is how Mrs. Clinton says she would
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$6 Billion for Something Called aQuantive and $1.3 Billion for Chrysler--What's Wrong With This Picture?
A lead story in Saturday's Wall Street Journal caught my eye: "Microsoft agreed to buy online-ad specialist aQuantive for $6 billion."Then there was the big story on Friday: Private equity firm buys 80% of Chrysler for $1.3 billion. The private equity firm will also contribute $6 billion to Chrysler and the separated Chrysler will assume all of the estimated $19 billion in health and pension
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Bush Administration Threatens to Veto Democratic Budget if it Doesn't "Address the Unsustainable Growth in Entitlement Spending"--What Chutzpah!!
President Bush spent considerable political capital passing the Part D Medicare drug benefit. That benefit alone increased the long-term Medicare unfunded liability by $8 trillion over the next 75 years. All of Medicare now has a $32 trillion unfunded liability.The President used substantial political capital just after his reelection trying to change the Social Security system because he made
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The “Realistic” Way to Do Health Care Reform
There is a debate about whether we ought to do incremental health care reform as the political process allows us to do so, or whether that is a major waste of time unless we deal with all of the big problems--particularly soaring costs--in a comprehensive way.This Massachusetts health care reform experience and all the problems it is having comes to mind as a case in point.In March, the Senate
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"Florida Health News" Debuts
Always glad to plug folks doing a good job in the states.If you are interested in health care policy and market activities in Florida, check out the Florida Health News, sponsored by the Florida Health Policy Center.It's a non-profit run by folks now doing it as a labor of love.So--to all of you making tons of money in health care down in Florida--give them a hand!
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The California HealthCare Foundation Launches a New Site Following California Health Reform
An excellent non-partisan website covering health reform efforts in California has recently launched--CalHealthReform.org.They explain themselves:"Health care reform has become a major topic of discussion and a key priority for California policymakers in 2007. The California HealthCare Foundation (CHCF) is working to inform statewide efforts to expand access to affordable care and coverage. CHCF
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The Kerry Reinsurance Plan--Important Improvements and the Need for Fundamental Cost Containment
My good friend, Richard Eskow, on his blog "The Sentinel Effect," has published another one of his thoughtful posts this time commenting on John Kerry's proposal to have the federal government absorb large health claim costs from employers: "John Kerry's Reinsurance Bill: Will it Work?"Richard is responding to an earlier post I did (John Kerry's Health Reinsurance Idea is Counter Productive--
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The Debate Over Medicare Advantage Funding--The NAACP Goes "Whoops!" and Stark Tries to Start a "Food Fight" Over Who Has to Come Up With the Money
The History--Skip it if you do this everyday.The Democratic Congress needs billions to offset the 10% Medicare physician fee cuts that will happen on January 1st if action isn't taken and to reauthorize the bipartisan State Children's Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP).S-CHIP will take at least $15 billion over five years--many Democrats (but not enough) want to expand it for a total cost of $50
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Health Wonk Review--Recent Posts Worthy of Your Time
Health Wonk Review is a biweekly compendium of the best of the health policy blogs. More than two dozen health policy, infrastructure, insurance, technology, and managed care bloggers participate by contributing their best recent blog postings to a roving digest, with each issue hosted at a different participant's blog. For participants, it's a way to network and share ideas, and for those
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As Part D Drug Prices are Rising are Profits Falling?
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee says the prices paid by consumers for the ten most prescribed drugs in the Part D program rose an average of 6.8% since December. At the same time, the committee says wholesale prices have risen just 3%.The committee also says that rebates from the drug companies to the Part D players total 4.6% of total drug costs--down from 5.2% last year.
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The Massachusetts Health Plan--Even the Uninsured Deserve Choices
The publisher of Health Market Survey returns with comments on what he believes is the fatal flaw in the new Massachusetts health plan:The Danger In The Massachusetts Health Planby Bill BoylesReputable and well-meaning people continue to applaud the Massachusetts health plan as a flawed but solid first start on covering the uninsured. A guest New York Times columnist last week fell into the trap
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The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Leads by Example--The Importance of Reaching Out in the Health Care Debate
Fundamental health care reform will not occur until the traditional opponents in the debate are willing to work together to build the foundation for a national consensus on how our health care system will work. No one side is ever going to win this debate and until the big players come to understand that the health care debate will give us more frustration than results.The Service Employees
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The Senate’s Mixed Message on Drug Reimportation—They Voted For it Before They Voted Against It!
To be completely fair, they actually voted against it before they voted for it but the outcome is the same.A whole lot of Senators now go down as voting for the ability of drug wholesalers, retailers, and consumers to bring drugs in from industrialized nations where prescription drugs are a lot cheaper. This provision was one that could have really had an impact on drug prices.While drug
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Medicare Advantage Private Fee-For-Service Programs Take a Big Hit in New York Times Article
The health insurance industry's attempts to justify the Medicare Advantage private fee-for-service (PFFS) product took a big hit in a story in the New York Times today.The Medicare Advantage experiment was supposed to be about proving that the market could provide better cost and quality care then the traditional government-run Medicare program.Instead, Medicare Advantage, and in particular its
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John Kerry's Health Reinsurance Idea is Counter Productive--Kerry Would Transfer All Health Care Costs Above $50,000 to the Feds
Senator John Kerry (D-MA) has rewarmed a health care proposal from his failed presidential campaign in 2004.Kerry is proposing that the federal government reimburse (or reinsure) an employer's health care costs for any worker incurring more than $50,000 in annual costs. The employer would have to offer a comprehensive health plan to its workers below this point and also offer wellness
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The Health Insurance Industry Employs Minority Groups to Protect Medicare Advantage Payments--Could They Have Sunk Any Lower?
The Democratic led Congress is looking hard at cutting payments to insurers participating in the Medicare Advantage business.With both the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) saying the private plans are overpaid by billions of dollars (the CBO says by $54 billion over five years) these HMO payments are a tempting target for Democrats looking to
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