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The health reform debate is on shifting sands. On the one hand, we see enthusiasm in corporate America for finding new ways to engage employees as partners in managing their health costs through consumer-directed health care tools such as Health Savings Accounts, Health Reimbursement Arrangements, and active chronic care management programs. Then there is the big surprise in the large … [Read more...] about Shifting Sands

We hosted our first annual Consumer Choice Community Conference last week in Washington, bringing together consumer-choice enthusiasts from around the country who are on the front-lines in making this new movement a reality. Click here for a detailed report on the conference. Several highlights: Rep. Paul Ryan, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee who is very savvy about health policy, … [Read more...] about Enthusiasts

Specialty hospitals hit the news this week because the moratorium on constructing new facilities is due to expire June 8. The moratorium was imposed by the Medicare Modernization Act in 2003 when large hospitals won their legislative fight to try to quash competition from these smaller, more focused hospitals, which are at least partly owned by physicians. This is a key battlefront between … [Read more...] about Innovators

The big news of Cover the Uninsured Week was the good news about the surge in uptake of Health Savings Accounts, especially among the previously uninsured. America's Health Insurance Plans surveyed 99 of its member companies who reported that more than one million people have signed up for HSAs since they were created in January of 2004. And 37% of them were previously uninsured. There's more good … [Read more...] about One Million and Counting

Next week is Cover the Uninsured Week, with more than 1,000 events scheduled around the country to highlight the need for action. This year, several conferences in Washington hosted by the think tank community will give fresh perspectives on the problem and solutions. First up will be the joint briefing on Capitol Hill hosted by the Galen Institute, the Council for Affordable Health Insurance, and … [Read more...] about The Strength of Ideas

Newspapers have been filled with articles about the crisis that General Motors is facing with its health costs. Executives say the $5.6 billion that the company will spend this year on health benefits adds $1,500 to the cost of each GM car and is a major factor in its $1.1 billion first quarter loss. Columnist Matt Miller argues in Fortune magazine that GM's competitors in other countries aren't … [Read more...] about The Real Deal

One of the leading individual and small-group health insurers, Assurant Health, has updated it's Health Savings Account data. Since 2004, the first year the accounts were available, Assurant says that 37% of its new individual medical sales have been HSAs. As of the end of February, it had received 175,000 applications for individual HSAs. Assurant Health's latest data also reinforce what other … [Read more...] about HSA News

The world pauses this week to reflect on the transformative leadership and inspiration of Pope John Paul II who devoted his life to spreading the truth about human dignity and the essential importance of following moral principles. The outpouring of affection throughout the world for the Holy Father shows how hungry the world was for his message. In the midst of these reflections, it seems an … [Read more...] about Guiding Principles