I think Pete Stark has it right. In a story in The Hill, Stark calls for waiting until later in 2009 or 2010 to move on a big health care reform proposal. The House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chair also points out that there are a number of "deferred maintenance" issues that will need to be dealt with sooner—SCHIP renewal, the upcoming Medicare physician fee cuts, and the pending health
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"Expanding Coverage Without Increasing Health Care Spending: Dartmouth Institute White Paper Recommends Course for the Obama Administration"
Once again the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice has provided a valuable contribution to our health care reform discussion with their new paper, "Improving Quality and Curbing Health Care Spending: Opportunities for the Congress and the Obama Administration."In my mind the authors made two critical points:We can insure everyone without dramatically increasing national
Who's The Guy Sitting Next to You? The Obama Health Care Reform Parties and Unexpected Guests
The incoming Obama administration is getting a quick start toward health care reform.By the end of the year, they anticipate having thousands of health care discussions in homes, businesses, coffee shops, and the like.About everyone, including the Obama health care team, believe Hillary Clinton's 1993 top-down health care reform process was a big mistake. The new folks don’t intend to make that
The Best Way to Spend the Coming Federal Health IT Money: An Open Letter to the Obama Health Team
An Open Letter to the Obama Health TeamBy David C. Kibbe & Brian KlepperIt seems likely that the Obama administration and Congress will spend a significant amount on health IT by attaching it as a first-order priority to the fiscal stimulus package. We take the President-elect at his word when he recently said:“...we must also ensure that our hospitals are connected to each other through the
How Can We Accomplish Health Care Reform If Everyone Ends Up Getting More?
I doubt anyone would disagree with the statement that America’s health care costs are too high, continue to grow at an unsustainable rate, and reform is critical to control costs, get everyone covered, and improve quality.In the wake of the election, I see one positive and magnanimous press release after another coming from the health care special interests. The press is full of daily stories
Likely Health Care Reform Will Not Reform the American Health Care System
Remember those Archway "Windmill Cookies?" They were a favorite when I was growing up.Robert Pear's article in the New York Times this weekend reminded me of that treat my mother used to buy for us kids. His article also illustrated the crisis many families are facing in what looks like it will be the worst recession of our lifetimes.Archway was a great American company--it was in business for 72
We Can Save 30% By Getting Rid of the Waste in the U.S. Health Care System—Sounds Like "Groundhog Day" To Me
As we begin the health care reform discussion in earnest, many are pointing out all of the waste in the system and the need to research what works best, provide the incentives to do it, manage the big spenders’ chronic care better, make better use of heath information technology, and encourage wellness and prevention.One of the disadvantages of being at this for more than 20 years is that I feel
