Opinion
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Panel Says Americans Should Be Required to Have Insurance
Opinion -The federal government should require all Americans to have basic health care coverage, a federal advisory panel stated in its final recommendations released on September 25. -
Obesity Study Questioned
Opinion -Obesity isn't just hurting Americans' self-esteem, a study released this summer concludes. It's hurting the nation's pocketbook as well. -
Cost Comparison Web Sites Enhance Choice for Prescription Drug Buyers
Opinion -Cost comparison Web sites that allow consumers to shop for the lowest fees are nothing new--travel sites like Orbitz.com and mortgage sites such as LendingTree.com have been forcing businesses to compete for customers for several years now. -
News Analysis: False Promises of Embryonic Stem Cell Research
Opinion -The U.S. media tend to relay uncritically the claim that embryonic stem cell (ESC) research has tremendous promise to treat and cure many health conditions--but "promise" is the key word. -
Does Insurance Matter?
Opinion -Skeptics of single-payer health care got a gift from the Rand Corporation and the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine in March 2006, but no one on the left or the right recognized its true meaning at the time. -
Schwarzenegger Rejects Plan for Single Payer
Opinion -California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) vetoed a bill in September that would have replaced the state's current health care model with a single-payer, universal insurance mandate. -
The Audacity of Hospitals
Opinion -When it comes to audacity, no industry has hospitals beat. For how many years have you heard them whine about the inappropriate use of emergency rooms? -
Retail Clinics a Rising Presence in Health Care Market
Opinion -Stocking your shopping cart between flu shots and hepatitis vaccinations might not be as far-fetched as it sounds. -
Report Addresses Kansas Specialty Hospital Controversy
Opinion -On September 5, the Kansas-based Flint Hills Center for Public Policy released a study, "Clearing the Air on Specialty Hospitals," that finds the state’s ongoing debate over specialty hospitals would be better served by focusing on why their numbers are -
HSA Bill Clears Key Committee in U.S. House
Opinion -A bill that would allow more people to use health savings accounts (HSAs) passed the Ways and Means Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives on September 27, clearing the way for a full floor vote after the November elections. The bill, H.R. -
NC Doctors Offer New Services
Opinion -Family physician Brian Forrest, M.D. started Access Health Care in 2002 to provide low-cost care and spend more time with his patients. -
Plain(s) Talk on Medicaid and Long-Term Care
Opinion -How can a state cope with the growing cost of Medicaid long-term care? The Flint Hills Center for Public Policy of Wichita, Kansas tackled that question in a study I conducted for it in July 2006. -
Media Advisory: Health Insurance Mandate Bad Idea, Experts Say
Opinion -(October 19, 2006 - Chicago, Illinois) On September 25, the 14-member advisory panel Citizens' Health Care Working Group, created by the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003, announced recommendations that all Americans be -
Web Sites Help Consumers Shop for Health Care
Opinion -Prompted in part by the rise of consumer-driven health plans and higher deductibles, and in part by a Minnesota law requiring the development by October 1 of a public Web site on common hospital charges, several insurance carriers in Minnesota are -
Proposed Trans Fat Ban Irks Chicago Restaurants
Opinion -Is slimming down a city worth having the government intruding on private lives? That's a question Chicago has been struggling with over the past few months, since Ald. -
HPV Debate Focuses on Girls in Public Schools
Opinion -With the issue of safety settled by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of Gardasil--a vaccine against sexually transmitted forms of the human papillomavirus (HPV) known to cause cervical cancer--a new area of debate is emerging: Whether public -
Census Reports Increase in Uninsured
Opinion -In late August, the U.S. Census Bureau released its annual numbers on the country's income and poverty levels and health insurance coverage. -
Report: Electronic Prescriptions Needed to Reduce Medical Errors
Opinion -Doctors' indecipherable handwriting, often the punch line of jokes, has been thrust into the national spotlight by a recent study calling for sweeping legislation to curb the dangers of medical illegibility. -
Mainstream Media Mischaracterizes HSA Effects
Opinion -A Commonwealth Fund study in the July/August issue of Health Affairs found high-cost patients with health savings accounts (HSAs) spend less out-of-pocket than they would under traditional health plans. -
Time for Straight Talk on Technology
Opinion -We need to talk about health information technology this month. On August 22--the same day President George W. -
Transparency Provision Removed from Federal Bill
Opinion -After intense lobbying by hospital groups, a provision establishing federal requirements for hospitals to publicly report prices was stripped from the Health Information Technology Promotion Act of 2006 before it passed the House of Representatives in -
Analysis: Illinois Task Force Favors Government Over Markets
Opinion -More than two years ago, in August 2004, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) signed into law the Health Care Justice Act, a measure aiming to ensure access to good, affordable health care for everyone statewide. -
Two Baltimore Hospitals Head Initiative to Curb Dangerous Staph Infections
Opinion -It can start with something as simple as a scrape on the knee. But a hospital visit, unfortunately, can end in the loss of a limb or even a life. -
State Regulations Drive Up Health Care Costs: Study
Opinion -A report released this summer by The Heritage Foundation's Center for Data Analysis (CDA) demonstrates a strong relationship between state regulation and the rising cost of individual health insurance plans.
