Medicare
Blog
Maine’s Medicaid Mistake Could Cost Lives
As featured in Kaiser Health News Morning Briefing Maine made history earlier this month by becoming the first state to adopt Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion via ballot initiative. The vote could inspire progressive activists in other states to push for similar referenda. Expanding Medicaid to cover childless, able-bodied adults would blow ...
Sally C. Pipes
November 27, 2017
Blog
Australia’s Health Care System is Hardly “Free”
During my recent vacation in Australia and New Zealand, my friends and I spent an enjoyable day in Melbourne while on a Tasmanian cruise. Whenever I visit a big city for the first time on a trip, I always book a survey tour to take in all the key highlights. ...
Tim Anaya
November 14, 2017
Commentary
A Public Option Would Lead to Single-Payer
Senate Democrats recently introduced two bills that would create a “public option” — a government-run health plan that would compete against private insurers for the business of shoppers on Obamacare’s exchanges. Proponents claim that this would offer consumers an additional choice — and lead to lower prices. But a public ...
Sally C. Pipes
November 13, 2017
Commentary
Single-Payer Is Failing Overseas — We Shouldn’t Adopt It Here
Two weeks ago, Sens. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., introduced a bill that would effectively allow some Americans to buy into Medicare. Other congressional Democrats favor an even more aggressive expansion of the program. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D- Mich., recently proposed dropping the program’s eligibility age from 65 ...
Sally C. Pipes
November 5, 2017
California
California’s Dangerous Dalliance with Single-Payer Continues
Californians better get comfortable. The wait time to see a doctor in the Golden State may be about to skyrocket. Last week, California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and a select committee of representatives held two days of hearings in Sacramento on Senate Bill 562 — the Healthy California Act — ...
Sally C. Pipes
October 30, 2017
Commentary
Americans hate waiting, so they’ll despise single-payer
What makes for an awful trip to the doctor? Waiting. Earlier this year, doctor-rating website Zocdoc took a look at its database of doctor reviews and found that long waits or appointment delays were the primary motivators of negative marks from patients. Given this aversion to waiting, it’s shocking that ...
Sally C. Pipes
October 30, 2017
Commentary
With Repeal And Replace On Hold, A New Path Forward For Health Reform
The drive to repeal and replace Obamacare appears dead. The latest attempt to roll it back — a bill authored by Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Bill Cassidy, R-La. — never even got a vote. And the September 30 deadline for passing a healthcare overhaul with a simple Senate majority under the ...
Sally C. Pipes
October 10, 2017
Commentary
Single-Payer Health Care Means You Might Be Denied Surgery for Being Too Fat — No, Really
Do people who are overweight or obese deserve health care? In the United Kingdom’s socialized health care system, the answer appears to be “no.” And if Democrats get their way, the same could be true in the United States. To save money, the U.K. National Health Service recently announced it ...
Sally C. Pipes
October 8, 2017
Commentary
Obamacare Might Not Be Dead, But IPAB Should Be
Full-scale repeal of Obamacare has failed, at least for now. But there are still components of the law that can, and should, be rolled back immediately. The Independent Payment Advisory Board is a prime example. Obamacare created the board of 15 unelected, presidentially-appointed bureaucrats to keep Medicare’s costs under control. If entitlement spending growth ...
Sally C. Pipes
October 5, 2017
Commentary
Docs Need to Inoculate Themselves Against Single-Payer
A majority of doctors now approve of government-run, single-payer health care, according to a new survey from Merritt Hawkins, a physician recruitment firm. Doctors should be careful what they wish for. Single-payer could transform doctors from highly respected, independent professionals to order-taking, unionized government employees. It’s hard to understand why ...
Sally C. Pipes
October 2, 2017
Maine’s Medicaid Mistake Could Cost Lives
As featured in Kaiser Health News Morning Briefing Maine made history earlier this month by becoming the first state to adopt Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion via ballot initiative. The vote could inspire progressive activists in other states to push for similar referenda. Expanding Medicaid to cover childless, able-bodied adults would blow ...
Australia’s Health Care System is Hardly “Free”
During my recent vacation in Australia and New Zealand, my friends and I spent an enjoyable day in Melbourne while on a Tasmanian cruise. Whenever I visit a big city for the first time on a trip, I always book a survey tour to take in all the key highlights. ...
A Public Option Would Lead to Single-Payer
Senate Democrats recently introduced two bills that would create a “public option” — a government-run health plan that would compete against private insurers for the business of shoppers on Obamacare’s exchanges. Proponents claim that this would offer consumers an additional choice — and lead to lower prices. But a public ...
Single-Payer Is Failing Overseas — We Shouldn’t Adopt It Here
Two weeks ago, Sens. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., introduced a bill that would effectively allow some Americans to buy into Medicare. Other congressional Democrats favor an even more aggressive expansion of the program. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D- Mich., recently proposed dropping the program’s eligibility age from 65 ...
California’s Dangerous Dalliance with Single-Payer Continues
Californians better get comfortable. The wait time to see a doctor in the Golden State may be about to skyrocket. Last week, California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and a select committee of representatives held two days of hearings in Sacramento on Senate Bill 562 — the Healthy California Act — ...
Americans hate waiting, so they’ll despise single-payer
What makes for an awful trip to the doctor? Waiting. Earlier this year, doctor-rating website Zocdoc took a look at its database of doctor reviews and found that long waits or appointment delays were the primary motivators of negative marks from patients. Given this aversion to waiting, it’s shocking that ...
With Repeal And Replace On Hold, A New Path Forward For Health Reform
The drive to repeal and replace Obamacare appears dead. The latest attempt to roll it back — a bill authored by Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Bill Cassidy, R-La. — never even got a vote. And the September 30 deadline for passing a healthcare overhaul with a simple Senate majority under the ...
Single-Payer Health Care Means You Might Be Denied Surgery for Being Too Fat — No, Really
Do people who are overweight or obese deserve health care? In the United Kingdom’s socialized health care system, the answer appears to be “no.” And if Democrats get their way, the same could be true in the United States. To save money, the U.K. National Health Service recently announced it ...
Obamacare Might Not Be Dead, But IPAB Should Be
Full-scale repeal of Obamacare has failed, at least for now. But there are still components of the law that can, and should, be rolled back immediately. The Independent Payment Advisory Board is a prime example. Obamacare created the board of 15 unelected, presidentially-appointed bureaucrats to keep Medicare’s costs under control. If entitlement spending growth ...
Docs Need to Inoculate Themselves Against Single-Payer
A majority of doctors now approve of government-run, single-payer health care, according to a new survey from Merritt Hawkins, a physician recruitment firm. Doctors should be careful what they wish for. Single-payer could transform doctors from highly respected, independent professionals to order-taking, unionized government employees. It’s hard to understand why ...