Health Care
California
Unhealthy Ballot Initiatives Feed the “Blob”
As California teeters on insolvency, Republican state legislators have proposed a budget that transfers $5 billion from two health care programs that are in surplus. The funds in question are for mental health and early childhood development. They are in “silos” because they were approved via propositions. To “break the ...
Commentary
Health Savings Accounts in Canada – Ground Zero of Single Payer?!
Born and raised in Canada, by the time I got to adulthood I was pretty fed up with my contemporaries’ claim that Canada’s uniqueness, relative to the U.S., was so-called “universal” health care. (I was born in 1962, so my contemporaries and I had no conscious experience of Canadian health ...
Business & Economics
Tort reform can help states’ fiscal crises
The Wall Street meltdown, with the Dow hovering near its lowest level in years, has obscured a troubling reality. Economic growth in the northeast region has been stunted for a long time, for a simple reason. Four states in particular — New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island — ...
California
California Republican Legislators Find Some Health Dollars
As California continues to teeter on insolvency, Republican legislators have proposed a budget amendment that transfers some funds from two health-care programs that are in surplus! Surplus? How the heck did that happen? The funds in question are for mental health and early childhood development (health and education). They are ...
Business & Economics
“I’d like to buy the world a Coke, and keep its taxes high”
When I was a kid, the jingle went: “I’d like to buy the world a Coke, and keep it company; I’d like to teach the world to sing, in perfect harmony…” Apparently, the composers were motivated by a group of stranded travellers at the airport in Shannon Airport, Ireland, hanging ...
Commentary
Medicaid’s Poverty Trap: Learning the Right Lesson
The Annals of Internal Medicine has an original article demonstrating that patients who had interrupted access to Medicaid in California (Medi-Cal) were more likely to be hospitalized than those who were constantly enrolled during a five year period. The New York Times concludes that the culprit is California’s requirement that ...
Commentary
Six Fixes For Healthcare Costs
The financial crisis will most likely leave Congress unable to pursue the wholesale healthcare reforms that many desire. Fortunately, there are several ways to lower healthcare costs and improve care without massive government outlays. Here are six fixes that lawmakers should consider: Build on the success of laser eye surgery ...
California
Families of 80% of Uninsured California Kids Reject State Coverage
The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research has published its annual update on health insurance in the Golden State. I’m a big consumer of the Center’s research. It conducts the outstanding California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), which was a source for much of my criticism of last year’s Schwarzenegger-Nuñez Health ...
Commentary
Politics & Health Care in Illinois: “Even Crooks are Appalled”
I feel a little lazy going after such low-hanging blog-fruit as Gov. Blagojevich, but as long as he refuses to give up command of the good ship Illinois, I suppose he’s fair game. Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal ran a guest column by Chicagoan and NPR radio-man, Scott Simon, noting that ...
Commentary
The big, fat myth of government prevention programs
‘Tis the season to over-indulge and gain a few pounds. According to government statistics, the nation is fatter than ever. Dieting — or perhaps a forgiving tailor — may help us squeeze into that little black dress by New Year’s Eve, but the government has its own plan to help ...
Unhealthy Ballot Initiatives Feed the “Blob”
As California teeters on insolvency, Republican state legislators have proposed a budget that transfers $5 billion from two health care programs that are in surplus. The funds in question are for mental health and early childhood development. They are in “silos” because they were approved via propositions. To “break the ...
Health Savings Accounts in Canada – Ground Zero of Single Payer?!
Born and raised in Canada, by the time I got to adulthood I was pretty fed up with my contemporaries’ claim that Canada’s uniqueness, relative to the U.S., was so-called “universal” health care. (I was born in 1962, so my contemporaries and I had no conscious experience of Canadian health ...
Tort reform can help states’ fiscal crises
The Wall Street meltdown, with the Dow hovering near its lowest level in years, has obscured a troubling reality. Economic growth in the northeast region has been stunted for a long time, for a simple reason. Four states in particular — New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island — ...
California Republican Legislators Find Some Health Dollars
As California continues to teeter on insolvency, Republican legislators have proposed a budget amendment that transfers some funds from two health-care programs that are in surplus! Surplus? How the heck did that happen? The funds in question are for mental health and early childhood development (health and education). They are ...
“I’d like to buy the world a Coke, and keep its taxes high”
When I was a kid, the jingle went: “I’d like to buy the world a Coke, and keep it company; I’d like to teach the world to sing, in perfect harmony…” Apparently, the composers were motivated by a group of stranded travellers at the airport in Shannon Airport, Ireland, hanging ...
Medicaid’s Poverty Trap: Learning the Right Lesson
The Annals of Internal Medicine has an original article demonstrating that patients who had interrupted access to Medicaid in California (Medi-Cal) were more likely to be hospitalized than those who were constantly enrolled during a five year period. The New York Times concludes that the culprit is California’s requirement that ...
Six Fixes For Healthcare Costs
The financial crisis will most likely leave Congress unable to pursue the wholesale healthcare reforms that many desire. Fortunately, there are several ways to lower healthcare costs and improve care without massive government outlays. Here are six fixes that lawmakers should consider: Build on the success of laser eye surgery ...
Families of 80% of Uninsured California Kids Reject State Coverage
The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research has published its annual update on health insurance in the Golden State. I’m a big consumer of the Center’s research. It conducts the outstanding California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), which was a source for much of my criticism of last year’s Schwarzenegger-Nuñez Health ...
Politics & Health Care in Illinois: “Even Crooks are Appalled”
I feel a little lazy going after such low-hanging blog-fruit as Gov. Blagojevich, but as long as he refuses to give up command of the good ship Illinois, I suppose he’s fair game. Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal ran a guest column by Chicagoan and NPR radio-man, Scott Simon, noting that ...
The big, fat myth of government prevention programs
‘Tis the season to over-indulge and gain a few pounds. According to government statistics, the nation is fatter than ever. Dieting — or perhaps a forgiving tailor — may help us squeeze into that little black dress by New Year’s Eve, but the government has its own plan to help ...
