Opinion
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Colorado Passes AHP and Mandate-Lite
Opinion -Sensing Colorado’s small group health insurance market was nearing collapse, the state legislature broke a long-standing political logjam to enact several reform measures in 2003. -
GAO Study Warns Privacy Protections Are Weak
Opinion -Personal data in the federal government may not be adequately protected from collection, use, and disclosure, according to a report released on July 30 by the United States General Accounting Office. -
Gingrich to Address 21st Century Medicare
Opinion -The Institute for International Research (IIR) has announced Newt Gingrich, founder of the Center for Health Transformation, will keynote its Medicare Financing and Product Development Congress being held December 8-10, 2003 at the Loews L’Enfant Plaza -
How Risky Is Maine’s Single-Payer Plan?
Opinion -Was passage of Maine’s Dirigo Health plan the right solution for the state’s health care woes? Risk theory suggests that before one enters into a risky venture, the upside of success must be greater than the downside of failure. -
Medicare Reform Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Opinion -Attention to Medicare reform has shifted since Congress left town for the August recess. Medicare dominated the summer debate, but enthusiasm has waned for the House and Senate bills as details have become clearer, especially about the drug benefit. -
Pence Measure Would Repeal Guaranteed Issue Mandate
Opinion -Legislation introduced on July 24 by Rep. -
PNHP ‘Factless’ on Canadian Health Care
Opinion -The August 21 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine carries an article claiming the administrative costs of health care in the United States are higher than in Canada: $1,059 (U.S.) in the United States versus $307 (U.S.) in Canada. -
Senate Drug Bill Expensive for Seniors
Opinion -Many Medicare beneficiaries could pay up to 50 percent more for their medicines--in some cases $600 more per year--under the Senate’s Medicare drug entitlement. -
Single-Payer Proposal Called ‘Politically Impractical’
Opinion -A controversial socialized medicine proposal published in the August 12 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) suggests the federal government should pay all health care bills for everyone living in the United States, effectively -
Survey Documents Doctor Burnout in Canada
Opinion -The Canadian Medical Association (CMA) warns “an alarming number of Canadian doctors are so exhausted, cynical, and stressed out that they are suffering from advanced stages of burnout. -
Where Has Your Prescription Been?
Opinion -Americans are taking a lot of risk buying prescriptions from foreign countries through storefront operations or over the Internet. -
Drug Reimportation Measure Passes House
Opinion -On July 25, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 2427, the Pharmaceutical Market Access Act of 2003, by a vote of 243 to 186. Eighty-seven Republicans joined 155 Democrats and one independent in supporting the measure. -
Drug Reimportation Bill Called ‘Risky’
Opinion -The idea of letting Americans buy prescription drugs from 26 foreign countries at reduced prices faces a formidable hurdle in the Senate. -
Riding the Rx Highway
Opinion -Almost everyone has heard about Americans, many lacking prescription drug insurance coverage, boarding buses to Windsor, Niagara Falls, Quebec City, New Brunswick, and Vancouver, all to do what is every American’s God-given right--hunt for bargains. -
HIV Aid to Africa Will Encounter Obstacles
Opinion -HIV/AIDS is mostly a tragedy of the developing world. Forty-two million people are infected with HIV, of which only 1.6 million are in North America, Western Europe, Australia, or New Zealand. -
Managed Care Planned for Georgia Medicaid
Opinion -Georgia state lawmakers have begun reviewing proposals for a major overhaul of the state Medicaid program, seeking to control costs while continuing to provide health care coverage for roughly 1.2 million poor, elderly, and disabled citizens. -
Medicare Conferees Agree on Some Basics
Opinion -Members of the conference committee charged with reconciling the House and Senate versions of Medicare reform legislation have reached agreement on some relatively uncontroversial and basic provisions. -
09/2003 Galen Report
Opinion -President George W. Bush has weighed in on reimportation of drugs, calling the initiative “dangerous” because it “would create serious drug safety problems ... -
Edwards Seeks Mandatory Coverage
Opinion -Presidential candidate Senator John Edwards (D-North Carolina) unveiled on July 28 a $53 billion health care reform plan he says will provide health coverage for uninsured U.S. residents. -
Investigative Report: Overcharging the Uninsured–Part 1
Opinion -There once was a time, not that long ago, when the U.S. health care system was geared to help the poor and uninsured. Today, it is geared to dramatically overcharge them. -
September 2003 Health Care News
Opinion -The September 2003 issue of Health Care News provides extensive coverage of the ongoing legislative debate over drug reimportation and also reports on: the unfair billing practices of hospitals across the country. -
09/2003 Consumer Choice Matters: The Physician as Small Business Owner
Opinion -I testified before the House Small Business Committee, chaired by Congressman Donald Manzullo (R-Illinois), at a hearing on physicians as small business owners. -
Congress To Be Exempt from Medicare Reform
Opinion -The U.S. House of Representatives on July 7 passed legislation guaranteeing federal employees and members of Congress will have prescription drug benefits better than those available through Medicare when they retire. -
Demonizing Trans Fats
Opinion -When the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) announced its ruling requiring food labels to specify the amount of trans fatty acids (TFAs) present in products, media coverage was prodigious, completely one-sided, and lacking in any scientific perspective.
