Opinion
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Lessons from the Flu Vaccine Shortage
Opinion -Every year, influenza--“the flu”--invades the U.S., striking the elderly and the ill especially hard. Every year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tries to determine in advance which strain of influenza is most likely to afflict the U.S. -
Mental Health Parity on 2004 Agenda
Opinion -Senator Judd Gregg (R-New Hampshire), chairman of the Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee, and Senator Pete Domenici (R-New Mexico) are drafting compromise mental health parity legislation for consideration by the committee in early 2004. -
Report: TennCare ‘Not Financially Viable’
Opinion -A management consulting firm hired to evaluate the financial viability of TennCare, the state’s troubled Medicaid program, issued the first of a two-part report on December 11. The prognosis was bleak. -
Responding to Critics of HSAs
Opinion -Myth: Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) will not be popular. Response: HSAs will revolutionize the U.S. health care and health insurance industries. -
Rx Discount Cards Could Pave Way for Future Reform
Opinion -The Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 creates a new Medicare prescription drug discount card and transitional assistance program. -
Seniors Wary of New Medicare
Opinion -President George W. Bush praised the new Medicare legislation he signed into law on December 8, saying it represents a “victory for all of America’s seniors. -
Supreme Court Takes Up Patients’ Rights
Opinion -The U.S. Supreme Court agreed in November to consider whether patients can bring suit against insurance companies and health plans when they refuse to pay for health care their doctors recommend. -
The New Jersey Car Wreck
Opinion -Welcome to New Jersey, where people with individual health insurance routinely pay more than $12,000 a year for premiums, and can spend as much as $263,904. -
Bush Signs Medicare Reform
Opinion -After months of wrangling and sometimes-bitter debate, the U.S. House of Representatives approved H.R. 1, the Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act, on November 22 by a vote of 220-215. -
Why the Medicare Reform Bill Is Bad Legislation
Opinion -Just how bad is the recently passed Medicare reform bill? -
MSAs Unleashed!
Opinion -The Medicare reform measure passed by Congress in November included a Health Savings Account (HSA) provision that renames--and dramatically expands and improves--the Medical Savings Account (Archer MSA) pilot program launched in 1996. -
Drug Importation Is Subject of National Symposium
Opinion -Illinois State Senators Steven Rauschenberger and Chris Lauzen are conservative Republicans who agree on many things, but at The Heartland Institute’s October 23, 2003 National Symposium on Drug Importation, the two showed themselves to be polar -
Consumer-Directed Care Works Today: in Dentistry
Opinion -The growing burden of health benefit costs for employers and increasing restrictions on consumers, doctors, and other care providers has everyone searching for answers. -
Minn. Policymakers Discuss Consumer-Driven Options for Medicaid
Opinion -More than 100 people--physicians, health insurers, insurance agents, employee benefits consultants, state officials, union leaders, members of the general public, and representatives of employers, clinics, and hospitals--attended an October 15 -
Resolved: To Tell the Truth
Opinion -My annual New Year’s resolution goes all the way back to the day my Dad administered some attitude adjustment while blurting out, “Always tell the truth, even when it hurts.” So here’s the truth: Color me conflicted. -
What Exactly Is Medicare?
Opinion -Medicare was established in 1965 to provide health care insurance to individuals age 65 and over. The program was expanded over the years to include disabled individuals as well. -
Look Ma, No Cavities
Opinion -Your child’s dental health is part of his or her whole body health. Here are some tips to make good dental health happen. While the basic rule is a checkup every six months, there are certain habits to follow in between times at home. -
How Wrong Laws Make Health Insurance Expensive
Opinion -Health Care News, a publication of The Heartland Institute in Chicago, featured a series of monthly case studies documenting how government regulations like community rating and guaranteed issue have destroyed the individual health insurance markets in -
Canadian Drugs
Opinion -If you think all the prescription drugs coming from Canada were originally manufactured in the United States, I have bad news. Canada gets only 60 percent of its prescription drug supply from the United States. -
Drug Bust
Opinion -The U.S. Customs Service recently examined 2,000 drug products shipped into six cities and found many contained unapproved versions of drugs that could pose a risk to your health. FDA Commissioner Dr. -
Medicare Confusion
Opinion -More than two-thirds of seniors are confused about the new Medicare Reform Act. A survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation shows only 15 percent of people over age 65 understand it. Those under age 65 are even more confused. -
Health Savings Accounts
Opinion -Health Savings Accounts--HSAs--are the new tax-favored option for paying for medical care. HSAs are available to every individual and every employer, large and small. -
California Insurance Mandate Faces Repeal
Opinion -Californians Against Government Run Healthcare, a coalition of business groups led by the California Chamber of Commerce, announced on December 1 it had collected more than 620,000 signatures in its effort to secure a ballot referendum to repeal state -
Heimlich Maneuver for Drowning
Opinion -Drowning is choking on water. The Heimlich maneuver for drowning is the same maneuver we learned years ago for choking on food. Here are eight reasons why the Heimlich maneuver is right for drowning victims: 1.
