Today's Opinions And Editorials

Main Category: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Also Included In: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP;  Seniors / Aging;  Public Health
Article Date: 09 Sep 2009 - 5:00 PDT

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President Obama's Health Choices The New York Times
President Obama's address to Congress about health care reform on Wednesday is the moment for him to stand tough for a large and comprehensive plan. This is no time to yield on core elements of reform or on the scale of the effort in search of enough Republican support to provide the veneer of bipartisanship, or even the one or two Republican votes needed to overcome a filibuster (9/5).

A Dangerous Cost-Cutting Prescription Forbes
The reduction of healthcare costs at the expense of drug companies' ability to perform research and development would be penny-wise but pound-foolish. Drugs often improve the span and quality of life in a remarkably cost-effective way, a fact of crucial significance not only to the individual patient but also to society as a whole (Henry I. Miller and Jeff Stier, 9/8).

Don't Make Disabled Wait For Medicare Des Moines Register
One disabled Iowa man has been living in a storage garage while waiting two-and-a-half years for his benefits (9/8).

Mayo Suggests Many Changes In Nation's Health Care System The Florida Times Union
Providing insurance without addressing underlying payment issues will create significant unintended consequences - for example, restricted access for Medicare patients and early bankruptcy of the program (William Rupp, 9/8).

A More Perfect Death The New York Times
Twelve years later, [Ezekiel] Emanuel's Atlantic essay remains a lucid case for the existence of a slippery slope, especially under government-managed health care, to some sort of death-by-bureaucrat (Ross Douthat, 9/6).

Health Care Reform: Bipartisan Or Bust Politico
Whether one party dominates in the bill writing or even a bipartisan vote results, a better work product emerges from the engagement of more diverse perspectives (Tom Davis, 9/7).

Whoa, Trigger Wall Street Journal
The latest political gimmick is the notion of a "trigger" for the public option: A new government program for the middle class would only come on line if private insurance companies fail to meet certain benchmarks (9/8).

This information was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at kaiserhealthnews.org.

© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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