Commentary
California
Read about Gov. Newsom's "May Revise" budget proposal
May Revise sets up California for painful spending choices and tax increases
Giving credit where it is due, Gov. Newsom’s “May Revise” budget proposal recognizes the seriousness of the situation. He proposes real cuts, opposes tax increases, and suggests some efficiency improvements – which are all positive steps. Unfortunately, the proposal still relies on too many budget gimmicks and fund shifts. The Newsom plan also underestimates the severity of the current budget shortfall that must be addressed. Making matters worse, growing economic headwinds, including the tech industry laying off over 81,000 people and California’s subpar personal income growth, raises concerns that the ...
Commentary
Read the latest on Medicare spending
Focus Medicare’s Dwindling Resources to Those Most in Need
Medicare’s trustees released their annual report this week. It paints a bleak picture of the program’s future. Total spending on the healthcare entitlement for seniors exceeded $1 trillion last year, the trustees note — some $12 billion more than the program took in. If current trends continue, Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance ...
Commentary
Read the latest on medical debt proposals
Medical Debt-Relief Can Backfire on Patients
Americans collectively owe some $220 billion in medical debt. In response, a growing number of states, including New Jersey and Connecticut, are using public funds to relieve those debts. Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa., proposed doing something similar in his state earlier this year. But is canceling medical debt the best way to help cash-strapped Americans? Click to ...
Commentary
Read how overregulation is having negative effects on nursing homes
Government shouldn’t micromanage nursing homes
The Biden administration published regulations last month requiring most nursing homes to maintain specific staffing levels. As a result, roughly three in four nursing homes will have to hire additional personnel. Progressives argue the rules will lead to better care. “For residents, this will mean more staff, which means fewer ER visits potentially, more ...
Business & Economics
Read on the negative effects of raising minimum wage
$20 Minimum Wage for Restaurant Workers is Only the Beginning
It was bound to happen. Less than a month after the $20-an-hour fast-food restaurant minimum wage kicked in, activists are demanding that all other minimum-wage workers, who got a bump to $16 an hour on Jan. 1, which will be elevated to $18 an hour if voters approve November’s Minimum ...
Commentary
Read the latest on single payer health care proposals
Sanders Views Canada’s Healthcare Through Rose-Colored Glasses
Sen. Bernie Sanders’s, I-Vt., assessment of U.S. healthcare during an event at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health earlier this month, was “It is a system not designed to provide health care to all people in a cost-effective way.” What Sen. Sanders failed to mention is that his preferred model for care delivery ...
Commentary
Oh, Canada: U.S. Patients Don’t Want Your Health Policies
There’s never been a worse time to get sick in Canada. Our northern neighbors must wait 2.5 years longer than Americans enrolled in Medicare to access new drugs, according to a report published this month by the Canadian Health Policy Institute. The Canadian government has chosen to deprive its citizens of the ...
Commentary
Read the latest on CA single-payer health care proposals
California’s Single-Payer Health Insurance Dream Remains a Fantasy
The state Assembly’s Health Committee advanced Assembly Bill 2200 this week. The bill would ban private health insurance and force all state residents into “CalCare,” a government-run health plan. Nine Democrats voted aye, four Republicans voted no, and three Democrats abstained. The measure now heads to the Appropriations Committee. But AB 2200’s odds ...
Commentary
Read on the benefits of telehealth
Time Medicare Joined 21st Century on Telehealth
The House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing this month to discuss extending pandemic-era policies that expanded access to telehealth under Medicare. Without urgent action by lawmakers, these telehealth flexibilities will expire at the end of the year. That’s an outcome few should welcome. Telehealth has proved enormously valuable to ...
Commentary
Read the latest on pharmaceutical benefit managers
Biosimilars could save the healthcare system billions
Cost Plus Drug Company CEO Mark Cuban recently pointed out that self-insured businesses could save over $70,000 per employee annually by getting their workers to switch from AbbVie’s blockbuster anti-inflammatory treatment Humira to a lower-cost biosimilar called Yusimry. Humira has a list price of roughly $7,000 per month. Since it lost market exclusivity last year, nine nearly identical copycats have hit ...
Read about Gov. Newsom's "May Revise" budget proposal
May Revise sets up California for painful spending choices and tax increases
Giving credit where it is due, Gov. Newsom’s “May Revise” budget proposal recognizes the seriousness of the situation. He proposes real cuts, opposes tax increases, and suggests some efficiency improvements – which are all positive steps. Unfortunately, the proposal still relies on too many budget gimmicks and fund shifts. The Newsom plan also underestimates the severity of the current budget shortfall that must be addressed. Making matters worse, growing economic headwinds, including the tech industry laying off over 81,000 people and California’s subpar personal income growth, raises concerns that the ...
Read the latest on Medicare spending
Focus Medicare’s Dwindling Resources to Those Most in Need
Medicare’s trustees released their annual report this week. It paints a bleak picture of the program’s future. Total spending on the healthcare entitlement for seniors exceeded $1 trillion last year, the trustees note — some $12 billion more than the program took in. If current trends continue, Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance ...
Read the latest on medical debt proposals
Medical Debt-Relief Can Backfire on Patients
Americans collectively owe some $220 billion in medical debt. In response, a growing number of states, including New Jersey and Connecticut, are using public funds to relieve those debts. Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa., proposed doing something similar in his state earlier this year. But is canceling medical debt the best way to help cash-strapped Americans? Click to ...
Read how overregulation is having negative effects on nursing homes
Government shouldn’t micromanage nursing homes
The Biden administration published regulations last month requiring most nursing homes to maintain specific staffing levels. As a result, roughly three in four nursing homes will have to hire additional personnel. Progressives argue the rules will lead to better care. “For residents, this will mean more staff, which means fewer ER visits potentially, more ...
Read on the negative effects of raising minimum wage
$20 Minimum Wage for Restaurant Workers is Only the Beginning
It was bound to happen. Less than a month after the $20-an-hour fast-food restaurant minimum wage kicked in, activists are demanding that all other minimum-wage workers, who got a bump to $16 an hour on Jan. 1, which will be elevated to $18 an hour if voters approve November’s Minimum ...
Read the latest on single payer health care proposals
Sanders Views Canada’s Healthcare Through Rose-Colored Glasses
Sen. Bernie Sanders’s, I-Vt., assessment of U.S. healthcare during an event at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health earlier this month, was “It is a system not designed to provide health care to all people in a cost-effective way.” What Sen. Sanders failed to mention is that his preferred model for care delivery ...
Oh, Canada: U.S. Patients Don’t Want Your Health Policies
There’s never been a worse time to get sick in Canada. Our northern neighbors must wait 2.5 years longer than Americans enrolled in Medicare to access new drugs, according to a report published this month by the Canadian Health Policy Institute. The Canadian government has chosen to deprive its citizens of the ...
Read the latest on CA single-payer health care proposals
California’s Single-Payer Health Insurance Dream Remains a Fantasy
The state Assembly’s Health Committee advanced Assembly Bill 2200 this week. The bill would ban private health insurance and force all state residents into “CalCare,” a government-run health plan. Nine Democrats voted aye, four Republicans voted no, and three Democrats abstained. The measure now heads to the Appropriations Committee. But AB 2200’s odds ...
Read on the benefits of telehealth
Time Medicare Joined 21st Century on Telehealth
The House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing this month to discuss extending pandemic-era policies that expanded access to telehealth under Medicare. Without urgent action by lawmakers, these telehealth flexibilities will expire at the end of the year. That’s an outcome few should welcome. Telehealth has proved enormously valuable to ...
Read the latest on pharmaceutical benefit managers
Biosimilars could save the healthcare system billions
Cost Plus Drug Company CEO Mark Cuban recently pointed out that self-insured businesses could save over $70,000 per employee annually by getting their workers to switch from AbbVie’s blockbuster anti-inflammatory treatment Humira to a lower-cost biosimilar called Yusimry. Humira has a list price of roughly $7,000 per month. Since it lost market exclusivity last year, nine nearly identical copycats have hit ...
