http://pnhp.org/blog PNHP's official blog Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:24:28 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Rep. Weiner Withdraws Single Payer Amendment from Current Health Care Debate Representative Anthony Weiner Press Release November 6, 2009 Today, Representative Anthony Weiner (D - Brooklyn and Queens), a member of the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, released the following statement on his decision to withdraw his single payer amendment to H.R. 3962, ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/06/rep-weiner-withdraws-single-payer-amendment/ Health Care Abroad: Taiwan An interview of William Hsiao, Ph.D., Professor of Economics at the Harvard School of Public Health The New York Times November 3, 2009 Q. What's the most important lesson that Americans can learn from the Taiwanese example? A. You can have universal coverage and good quality health care while ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/05/harvard-professor-william-hsiao-on-effective-reform/ If you were to believe the hype that accompanied its release, you might think that it would be as important as Medicare and Social Security. The New York Times concluded that "This bill will take a long stride toward universal coverage while remaining fiscally responsible." Nobel laureate economist Paul Krugman ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/05/health-care-reform-2009-no-bill-is-better-than-a-bad-bill/ Letter from CBO Director Douglas Elmendorf Congressional Budget Office November 2, 2009 This letter responds to questions about the subsidies that enrollees would receive for premiums and cost sharing and the amounts that they would have to pay, on average, if they purchased a relatively low cost plan in the new insurance exchanges ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/04/cbo-on-premiums-and-cost-sharing-of-the-house-bill/ On October 30, thirteen brave people sat in front of the entrance of Independence Blue Cross (IBC), in order to demand that IBC change its practice of pretending to be a non profit, while spending millions lobbying against real health care reform. They were arrested for exercising their constitutional ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/04/the-philly-13/ Interviews with Washington's power players Drew Altman, President and CEO of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation The Washington Post November 2, 2009 MS. ROMANO: In your view, what must a bill have in order to be a step forward in health care reform. MR. ALTMAN: Well, you know, we're having this debate because the ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/03/drew-altman-on-americans-affording-health-care/ Changing Numbers Make Meaning Even More Elusive By David M. Herszenhorn The New York Times November 1, 2009 Once Ms. Pelosi realized that she could not get a robust public option, she needed another way to reduce the bill’s cost. The answer was a wider expansion of Medicaid, the state-federal insurance for the poor. In ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/02/expanding-medicaid-to-save-money/ By Iyah Romm, Sylvia Thompson, MD and Elizabeth Wiley, JD, MPH I want to cover everybody. Now, the truth is that, unless you have a single-payer system, in which everybody is automatically covered, then you're probably not going to reach every single individual. ~ President Barack Obama, July 22, 2009 As future ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/01/our-legislators-must-stop-politicking-with-the-lives-of-our-patients-and-their-constituents/ By Kip Sullivan, JD Executive summary Both the Senate and House versions of the proposed “public option” require that corporations with expertise in health insurance “administer” the “option.” This fact received no attention until October 24 when the Washington Post reported that the “option” would “likely” be run by insurance companies. Several ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/11/01/what-role-insurance-companie/ Preliminary Analysis of the Affordable Health Care for America Act Congressional Budget Office October 29, 2009 The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) have completed a preliminary analysis of H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act, as introduced on October 29, 2009. The options ... http://pnhp.org/blog/2009/10/30/cbo-report-on-the-public-option/