A few months after Obamacare was enacted, three of my colleagues and I began work on a book to explain, as the title says, “Why Obamacare Is Wrong For America.” It was published exactly a year after the law was signed, and virtually everything we predicted then has happened (except where parts of the law were subsequently changed, such as repealing the long-term care … [Read more...] about Obamacare’s Biggest Hits
Ready for 2020
With Iran and impeachment dominating the news, health reform has moved to the sidelines. But health care remains by far the top issue for voters in 2020, so here are some articles I think are the most important and relevant going forward. Health Costs: Doug Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum, writes about health costs in his terrific … [Read more...] about Ready for 2020
More Hits And Misses For Obamacare
Between Congress and the Courts, Obamacare took more hits this week: The most despised part of the ACA—the moribund individual mandate—was declared unconstitutional in a 2-1 decision by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, but the judges left it to a lower court to sort out the complex task of deciding how much, if any, of the rest of the law should stand.Congress repealed for good three key … [Read more...] about More Hits And Misses For Obamacare
Spending Deal Would Make Obamacare More Fiscally Irresponsible
In selling Obamacare before Congress a decade ago, President Barack Obama promised that he “would not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits, either now or in the future.” From her perch behind the president, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi leaped out of her seat applauding at this line. So did Vice President Joe Biden and the entire Democrat caucus. But it turns out that … [Read more...] about Spending Deal Would Make Obamacare More Fiscally Irresponsible
Politics Prevail Over Solutions To Drug Pricing
It won’t make the headlines, but Congress was hard at work this week producing health reform legislation around ideas that have bi-partisan support and which actually could become law. But that apparently is not Speaker Pelosi’s goal. Pelosi strong-armed her drug pricing bill, H.R. 3, through the House yesterday, with unanimous Democratic support and two Republican defections (Reps. … [Read more...] about Politics Prevail Over Solutions To Drug Pricing
Hot topics: Drug prices and surprise bills
Amidst the deluge of impeachment coverage, Speaker Pelosi has announced she will be bringing her aggressive prescription drug pricing bill to a vote in the House on Wednesday. The bill would impose destructive price controls on medicines, levy crushing taxes of 95% on sales if companies that don’t play along, and extend the price controls to private plans. The Council … [Read more...] about Hot topics: Drug prices and surprise bills
A Targeted Approach to Surprise Medical Billing
New Paper By Badger & Blase Surprise medical bills are a source of frustration for many Americans, and legislation to address the problem appeared to be on a fast track early in the year. But action has since slowed, primarily due to a stand-off between the two powerful interest groups that often benefit from surprise medical bills: providers and insurers. Complicating this … [Read more...] about A Targeted Approach to Surprise Medical Billing
New York City is a hot spot for illegal Medicaid enrollment
New York state is grappling with a Medicaid shortfall in the billions of dollars. And one of the main reasons is improper enrollment. Using annual information from the Census Bureau to assess the demographic make-up of Medicaid enrollees over time, researcher Aaron Yelowitz and I estimated that 2.3 million to 3.3 million Medicaid enrollees nationally make an income in excess of what is … [Read more...] about New York City is a hot spot for illegal Medicaid enrollment