Health care issues: End-of-life decisionsOctober 12th, 2009 Health care issues: End-of-life decisionsA look at key issues in the health care debate:
THE ISSUE: Would proposed health care legislation pay for counseling that might encourage elderly people to end their lives sooner than they might otherwise do?
THE POLITICS: This became one of the summer's most explosive topics, with flatly untrue claims competing with mere exaggerations and often-confusing explanations. Pending House legislation would let Medicare reimburse doctors who consult with patients on end-of-life care.
Health care issues: Medicare cutsOctober 6th, 2009 Health care issues: Medicare cutsA look at key issues in the health care debate:
THE ISSUE: Will seniors' Medicare benefits be slashed to pay for health care overhaul?
THE POLITICS: Democrats are proposing to reduce the ballooning costs of Medicare to keep the program solvent. They want to root out waste to find the savings, and to reduce payments to some providers.
Health care issues: Overutilization of careSeptember 25th, 2009 Health care issues: Overutilization of careA look at key issues in the nation's health care debate:
THE ISSUE: Health care costs in the United States are far higher than in other countries without better outcomes, and most experts agree that's partly because of the excessive and often unnecessary use of expensive tests, surgeries and procedures. Will health overhaul legislation address this?
THE POLITICS: Ezekiel Emanuel, an oncologist, White House adviser and brother of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, has written that there's a "perfect storm of overutilization" of health care in the United States that's the greatest contributor to high medical costs.
Health care issues: Bundling paymentsSeptember 22nd, 2009 Health care issues: Bundling paymentsA look at key issues in the health care debate:
THE ISSUE: What can the government do to get doctors and hospitals to deliver cheaper medical services?
THE POLITICS: Medicare's fee-for-service structure means that doctors, hospitals and other providers have a greater financial incentive to provide large quantities of medical services than to provide high-quality medical services. Democrats and the Obama administration want to change that, and use the savings to help pay for their health overhaul legislation and bring down medical costs over the long term.
Health care issues: Calculating the price tagSeptember 17th, 2009 Health care issues: Calculating the price tagA look at key issues in the health care debate:
THE ISSUE: Is the Congressional Budget Office doing an accurate job of calculating how much the health care overhaul will cost?
THE POLITICS: Democrats pushing for overhaul of the nation's health care system face a dilemma — they want to cover as many people as generously as possible, while limiting the cost to deflect Republican accusations that they are addicted to spending and tax increases. That makes every dollar count.
Health care issues: What's the best treatment?September 16th, 2009 Health care issues: What's the best treatment?A look at key issues in the health care debate:
THE ISSUE: Researching which treatments work best and how much they cost, and how doctors and patients should use that information. THE POLITICS: On the surface, it seems like common sense: How different health conditions are treated — whether with surgery, drugs or managing diet and exercise, for example — should depend on what works best and costs least.
Details on the costs of the Senate Finance Committee chairman's health care billSeptember 16th, 2009 Details on costs of Baucus health care billA rundown of the new spending in Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus' health care overhaul bill, and a look at how it's paid for. The numbers are 10-year totals covering 2010-2019.
HHS announces Medicare pilot program with incentive payments for better primary careSeptember 16th, 2009 HHS announces Medicare pilot programWASHINGTON — The Obama administration announced a new Medicare pilot program Wednesday to strengthen primary care services for patients and cut costly emergency room visits — by offering financial incentives to doctors. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the three-year pilot plan is modeled after a program being tested in Vermont.
Health care issues: Shortage of primary care doctors and incentives to attract moreSeptember 15th, 2009 Health care issues: Shortage of doctorsA look at key issues in the health care debate:
THE ISSUE: Will there be enough doctors to provide care to millions of previously uninsured patients if health reform is passed?
THE POLITICS: With primary-care doctors in limited supply, Republicans opposed to sweeping reform say the health care system would be overwhelmed if nearly 50 million uninsured Americans are given coverage. As is, the American Academy of Family Physicians is predicting a shortage of 40,000 primary-care doctors by 2020, with medical schools graduating only half the number needed to meet demand.
Obama: Medicare trust fund will not be used to pay for health care overhaulSeptember 9th, 2009 Obama: 'I will protect Medicare'WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Wednesday night promised to protect Medicare and reassured the elderly that Medicare funds would not be used to pay for a health care overhaul. The president said the plan would eliminate billions of dollars in waste and fraud and what he called the "unwarranted subsidies" that go to insurance companies.
Canada health care _ a brief historyAugust 29th, 2009 Canada health care _ a brief historyUntil about 50 years ago, the Canadian and U.S. health care systems were fairly similar — part public and part private, for-profit and nonprofit, with large numbers of people uninsured and shouldering their own medical bills.
Republicans target worried seniors with health 'bill of rights'August 24th, 2009 Republicans offer seniors health 'bill of rights'WASHINGTON — Republicans are targeting older Americans worried about President Barack Obama's health overhaul plans with a "seniors' health care bill of rights."
The six principles outlined Monday by the Republican National Committee include protecting Medicare, prohibiting rationing of health care based on age and making sure government doesn't get between seniors and their doctors. The Obama administration has insisted repeatedly that it doesn't want to shrink Medicare benefits, ration care or reduce the role of doctors.
Obama tries to reassure seniors worried about Medicare cuts in health care overhaulAugust 11th, 2009 Obama seeks to reassure seniors on health carePORTSMOUTH, N.H. — President Barack Obama is seeking to reassure the nation's seniors that health care overhaul won't mean cuts in Medicare.
Obama defends government's ability to run health care plan, cites Medicare programAugust 11th, 2009 Obama defends ability of government on health carePORTSMOUTH, N.H. — President Barack Obama says Americans wary of a government-run health care plan should look no further than Medicare.
Obama at AARP health care forum: 'We've got to get a better bang for our health care dollar'July 28th, 2009 Obama: Existing health system threatens MedicareWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is telling participants in an online forum on health care that the current system and its skyrocketing costs are a threat to Medicare. Obama says the Medicare trust fund will be in the red and out of money in a decade unless Washington overhauls the system.
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