The July 2009 issue of Health Care News reports the Maine legislature’s rejection of a plan that would have given residents more choice in health insurance by allowing policy writers in neighboring states to sell individual insurance policies in Maine as well.
Also in this issue:
* An appeals court panel has decided doctors do not have the final say when determining how much care a state provides to Medicaid patients.
* Representatives of five major health care trade associations agreed with President Barack Obama on a proposal to reduce the growth of health care costs over the next ten years
* Michigan lawmakers are considering legislation that would allow consumers to sue prescription drug makers over side effects even when the drug is FDA-approved.
* Iowa lawmakers have stripped from a pending health care reform bill a proposal to establish a health insurance exchange to help uninsured Iowans find health coverage.
* The Nevada Assembly has passed a measure repealing a $350,000 cap on jury awards for medical malpractice. Nevada voters approved the cap at the ballot box in 2004.
* What would it mean for a public—i.e., government-run—insurance plan to compete with a private plan, and why would anyone want that to happen?
