Sally C. Pipes
Commentary
COVID vaccinations are going much too slowly — here’s how to speed them up and save lives
Vaccines against the novel coronavirus were developed in record time. But getting those vaccines into the arms of Americans has been frustratingly slow at a time when speeding up vaccinations is literally a matter of life and death. Tragically, thousands of people are dying of COVID-19 every day in the U.S. and the ...
Sally C. Pipes
January 3, 2021
Commentary
The illogical California lockdown orders
Get ready to stay home indefinitely, my fellow Californians. Gov. Gavin Newsom has suggested that the stay-at-home order he issued Dec. 3 will likely be extended well into January. So for a few more weeks — at least — most Californians won’t be able to engage in a wide range ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 29, 2020
Commentary
Why Joe Biden must keep Donald Trump’s short-term health plans in place
President-elect Joe Biden has promised “a dramatic expansion of health care coverage and bold steps to lower health care costs” once he takes office after his inauguration Jan. 20. But one of his first orders of business may undermine both those goals in one fell swoop. The incoming administration has signaled its intention to roll ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 29, 2020
Commentary
Americans are getting a good return on their healthcare spending
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released new data on Dec. 16 on health expenditures. In 2019, overall spending rose 4.6% to reach a total of $3.8 trillion, or 17.7% of the economy. That’s enough to make anyone do a double take. But a deeper look at the data ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 29, 2020
Commentary
COVID vaccines can give economy a needed shot in the arm once essential workers vaccinated
The arrival of two coronavirus vaccines authorized by the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use this month has prompted fierce debate about who ought to be immunized first. The latest guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices put health care workers and older Americans living in nursing ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 29, 2020
Commentary
COVID-19 has shown us how dysfunctional the American regulatory state can be
In November, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first rapid at-home coronavirus test. That would seem to be unabashedly good news. But it’s actually an indictment of federal regulators, who have moved at a snail’s pace in the fight against the coronavirus. These delays have been concerning for folks ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 24, 2020
Commentary
Work Requirements Can Preserve Medicaid For Those Who Need It Most
This month, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case early next year that will decide whether states have the power to impose work requirements as a condition of receiving Medicaid benefits. The question before the high court is a legal one. But as a matter of policy, work requirements are a great ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 21, 2020
Commentary
The coming vaccine doesn’t mean we should delay routine care
This week, the first round of people began receiving a vaccine against COVID-19 in the United States. That offers some hope that we’ll finally be able to get the pandemic under control. Some people may take the arrival of a vaccine to mean that they can wait a few more months for ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 21, 2020
Commentary
Moderna COVID vaccine gets key endorsement — vaccinations are safe and will end pandemic
The vote Thursday by a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel to recommend an emergency use authorization for Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine is an important and welcome step in our battle to end the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccinations are now underway with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. People will begin received inoculations of the ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 17, 2020
Commentary
For HHS post Biden taps ObamaCare’s lead defender – don’t expect him to be a moderate
President-elect Joe Biden announced Monday that he plans to nominate California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to be his Secretary of Health and Human Services. It’s a conventional, if unexpected, pick. The Washington rumor mill had New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo as the front-runners to lead HHS until ...
Sally C. Pipes
December 8, 2020
COVID vaccinations are going much too slowly — here’s how to speed them up and save lives
Vaccines against the novel coronavirus were developed in record time. But getting those vaccines into the arms of Americans has been frustratingly slow at a time when speeding up vaccinations is literally a matter of life and death. Tragically, thousands of people are dying of COVID-19 every day in the U.S. and the ...
The illogical California lockdown orders
Get ready to stay home indefinitely, my fellow Californians. Gov. Gavin Newsom has suggested that the stay-at-home order he issued Dec. 3 will likely be extended well into January. So for a few more weeks — at least — most Californians won’t be able to engage in a wide range ...
Why Joe Biden must keep Donald Trump’s short-term health plans in place
President-elect Joe Biden has promised “a dramatic expansion of health care coverage and bold steps to lower health care costs” once he takes office after his inauguration Jan. 20. But one of his first orders of business may undermine both those goals in one fell swoop. The incoming administration has signaled its intention to roll ...
Americans are getting a good return on their healthcare spending
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released new data on Dec. 16 on health expenditures. In 2019, overall spending rose 4.6% to reach a total of $3.8 trillion, or 17.7% of the economy. That’s enough to make anyone do a double take. But a deeper look at the data ...
COVID vaccines can give economy a needed shot in the arm once essential workers vaccinated
The arrival of two coronavirus vaccines authorized by the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use this month has prompted fierce debate about who ought to be immunized first. The latest guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices put health care workers and older Americans living in nursing ...
COVID-19 has shown us how dysfunctional the American regulatory state can be
In November, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first rapid at-home coronavirus test. That would seem to be unabashedly good news. But it’s actually an indictment of federal regulators, who have moved at a snail’s pace in the fight against the coronavirus. These delays have been concerning for folks ...
Work Requirements Can Preserve Medicaid For Those Who Need It Most
This month, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case early next year that will decide whether states have the power to impose work requirements as a condition of receiving Medicaid benefits. The question before the high court is a legal one. But as a matter of policy, work requirements are a great ...
The coming vaccine doesn’t mean we should delay routine care
This week, the first round of people began receiving a vaccine against COVID-19 in the United States. That offers some hope that we’ll finally be able to get the pandemic under control. Some people may take the arrival of a vaccine to mean that they can wait a few more months for ...
Moderna COVID vaccine gets key endorsement — vaccinations are safe and will end pandemic
The vote Thursday by a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel to recommend an emergency use authorization for Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine is an important and welcome step in our battle to end the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccinations are now underway with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. People will begin received inoculations of the ...
For HHS post Biden taps ObamaCare’s lead defender – don’t expect him to be a moderate
President-elect Joe Biden announced Monday that he plans to nominate California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to be his Secretary of Health and Human Services. It’s a conventional, if unexpected, pick. The Washington rumor mill had New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo as the front-runners to lead HHS until ...