health care reform

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5 Other Things Employers Should Have to Provide
5 Other Things Employers Should Have to Provide
OPINION
Mar 12, 2012 1:01 PM CDT

5 Other Things Employers Should Have to Provide

Birth control is great, but why not a salad bar?: Allysia Finley

(Newser) - For too long, employers have insisted on determining for themselves which employee benefits to offer, but President Obama's "2,000-page health law" cuts that conceit off at the pass, writes Allysia Finley in the Wall Street Journal . Now the government decides, and the government wants employees to get...

Uninsured ObamaCare Challenger Went Bankrupt
Uninsured ObamaCare Challenger
Went Bankrupt
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Mar 11, 2012 11:34 AM CDT

Uninsured ObamaCare Challenger Went Bankrupt

...with $4.5K in unpaid medical bills

(Newser) - Mary Brown, who became the lead plaintiff in the National Federation of Independent Business' challenge of President Obama's health-care law because she didn't have insurance and didn't want to be forced to buy it, recently filed for bankruptcy … with $4,500 worth of unpaid medical bills....

We Should Pay for Drugs Only If They Work

Biotech exec Samuel Waksal argues for a pay-for-results system

(Newser) - Medical costs, and especially drug costs, are scandalously high in the US, but just capping them isn't the answer, biotech exec Samuel Waksal writes in the New York Times . "Individuals and insurance companies should be willing to pay—and pay a lot—for drugs when they work,"...

Murkowski Regrets Vote on Birth Control

Alaska senator rethinks support of Blunt amendment

(Newser) - Lisa Murkowski says she's had a change of heart on the Blunt amendment , and would vote against it if given a second chance. The Alaska Republican has taken heat from moderate women back home for supporting the amendment, which would have allowed employers to opt out of any health...

Santorum in '93: Feds Should Fix Health System

Mitt Romney, flip-flopper? Try Santorum on health care

(Newser) - Rick Santorum has criticized Mitt Romney for flip-flopping on health care , but it turns out Santorum once supported government involvement in health care himself—in his own words, "to alter that marketplace to make it work better." Santorum gave an interview during a heated senatorial campaign in 1993...

The Church Has to Live With Birth Control
 The Church Has to 
 Live With Birth Control 
Gail Collins
Feb 9, 2012 12:42 PM CST

The Church Has to Live With Birth Control

Gail Collins doesn't think new rules are impinging on religious freedom

(Newser) - The furor over President Obama's decision to force Catholic employers to provide health care that covers contraceptives brought a story to mind for Gail Collins. Her mother-in-law once told her that, when she'd confessed to a priest she was using birth control, he replied, "You're no...

Many States Lag in Embracing Obamacare

States have chance to organize their own 'exchanges'

(Newser) - Obamacare needs more than the Supreme Court's approval this summer. It also requires states to organize "exchanges" where people can buy health insurance—but 75% of uninsured Americans live in states that are yet to get cracking, the AP reports. Some states, like Florida and Louisiana, have flat-out...

US to Big Pharma: Disclose What You Pay Docs

New rules aim to increase transparency

(Newser) - Studies have found that when doctors accept payments from drug companies, it can influence their treatment decisions—so the Obama administration will soon require drug companies to disclose those payments. The New York Times reports that around 25% of doctors receive cash from drug companies for consulting, speaking engagements, and...

Judge Roberts: All Justices Can Rule on Obamacare

Chief justice says Supreme Court peers can't withdraw

(Newser) - The Supreme Court's chief justice yesterday defended the right of his fellow justices to rule on Obamacare, the New York Times reports. John G. Roberts didn't mention justices Clarence Thomas and Elena Kagan by name, but both are facing calls to withdraw from the ruling because of their...

Millions Siphoned From Medicaid by Fake Firms
Dummy Firms Squeeze Millions From Medicare
INVESTIGATION
Dec 22, 2011 4:42 AM CST

Dummy Firms Squeeze Millions From Medicare

Fraud-fighters finding it hard to stay ahead of shell companies

(Newser) - Fraudsters using complicated networks of ghost companies are sucking hundreds of millions of dollars out of Medicare every year and it's a bit like taking candy from a baby, a Reuters investigation finds. The probe—which officials say will likely lead to a criminal investigation of the firms involved—...

Supreme Court Will Hear ObamaCare Case in March

Lengthy case will be argued over 3 days

(Newser) - President Obama's health-care law will head to the Supreme Court at the end of March, and justices are devoting a whopping five and a half hours of arguments to it. Most cases are argued for just an hour, but the weight of the case and its implications for federal...

White House Gives States More Say on Health Law

Proposal would let them determine 'essential benefits'

(Newser) - In a potentially big shift, the White House is poised to give states much more flexibility on how to implement a key part of health care reform. Under a proposal outlined by health chief Kathleen Sebelius, the federal government would largely let states determine what "essential health benefits" would...

Gingrich Backed Individual Health Care Mandate

And other big government programs that benefited his clients: NYT

(Newser) - These days, like most Republicans, Newt Gingrich says he's opposed to the individual mandate in the Democrats' health care reform bill, which forces Americans to hold insurance. But in a May 2009 conference call with health care executives, Gingrich sang a very different tune, the New York Times has...

Health Reform Insured 2.5M Young People

Coverage up among 19- to 25-year-olds, now eligible for parents' insurance

(Newser) - Roughly 2.5 million people between the ages of 19 and 25 have gained health insurance since President Obama signed his health care reform bill, more than double the 1 million the White House had been expecting, according to a new administration analysis. The bump is almost entirely due to...

Breast Cancer Survivor Apologizes to Barack Obama, Says ObamaCare Gave Her Insurance When No One Else Could

 I Was Wrong: 
 ObamaCare 
 May Save Me 
in case you missed it
Dec 10, 2011 10:51 AM CST

I Was Wrong: ObamaCare May Save Me

One breast cancer patient's apology to the president

(Newser) - Until about a month ago, Spike Dolomite Ward was so upset with Barack Obama that she’d taken a Sharpie to her bumper sticker, changing its message from "Got hope" to "Got nope." Now, she’s publicly apologizing. What changed? “I found out three weeks ago...

On Way Out, Medicare Boss Bashes 'Extreme' Waste

Donald Berwick says 20-30% of health care spending helps no one

(Newser) - Between 20% and 30% of all US health care spending is pure “waste,” according to departing Medicare and Medicaid chief Donald Berwick. “Much is done that does not help patients at all, and many physicians know it,” Berwick said in an interview with the New York ...

Health-Care Firms Paid Gingrich's Think Tank $37M

...and some of its policy advice echoed ObamaCare

(Newser) - More consulting trouble for Newt. Since 2003, a Gingrich-founded think tank has pulled in at least $37 million from the health-care industry—and has called for an insurance mandate reminiscent of President Obama’s. Wellpoint, Blue Cross Blue Shield, AstraZeneca, and other members of the Center for Health Transformation paid...

C-SPAN: Let Us Televise Health Care Arguments

It asks Supreme Court to allow cameras for first time

(Newser) - C-SPAN thinks the coming health care debate before the Supreme Court would be a perfect time to make history. The channel has written a letter to John Roberts requesting that it be allowed to televise the five-plus hours of arguments scheduled to take place in March over President Obama's...

Foes Want Kagan, Thomas to Skip Health Care Vote

But don't expect either to do so

(Newser) - Now that the Supreme Court has decided to rule on President Obama's health care law, expect to see pressure from activists on both sides to get Elena Kagan and Clarence Thomas to recuse themselves, notes the National Law Journal . Already, the decision has called new attention to a story...

Why Supreme Court's Look at ObamaCare Surprises

SCOTUS allots 5.5 hours for oral arguments, will examine Medicaid portion

(Newser) - That the Supreme Court decided to hear a challenge to ObamaCare's individual mandate is not too shocking. But, as Politico reports, a number of aspects of the court's decision are surprising—and historic. The court will hear 5.5 hours of oral arguments in March, which Politico calls...

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