March 11, 2011
Shedding Light on Influence of Hospitals on Albany
By RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA
Running a hospital in a poor neighborhood of New York City means hoping your competitor fails before you do, getting squeezed by insurers, treating a growing uninsured population, angling for alliances to survive and always, always, asking for favors from Albany.
It is in that world of constant anxiety that, federal prosecutors charged this week, state lawmakers received millions of dollars in bribes over more than a decade from a hospital company operating in Queens and Brooklyn, in the form of phony consulting deals, no-show jobs and kickbacks from contractors.http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/12/nyregion/12hospital.html?hp=&pagewanted=print
The above story illustrates the beauty of the marketplace at work!
The Supreme Court and the health-care mandate muddle
By George F. Will
Sunday, March 13, 2011;
When the Supreme Court considers whether Congress has the constitutional power to compel individuals to buy health insurance, the argument supporting Congress may rest on a non sequitur and a semantic fiat. A judge's recent ruling argues that the insurance mandate must be constitutional because Obamacare would collapse without it. A forthcoming law review article agrees with this and with the judge's idea that, regarding commerce, being inactive is an activity.
Blue Shield's cumulative rate hikes could reach 86.5%
If its third planned premium increase in recent months is allowed to take effect May 1, Blue Shield says, 45,500 customers will face hikes of 50% or more, and 900 will see their bills rise 80% or more.
Maine hospitals fault state for over-budget payments
The Donald Berwick Predicament
Dr. Donald Berwick runs the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. He now serves under a recess appointment that will expire at the end of this year. And, although the president could take the politically risky step of extending his tenure with another recess appointment, officially naming him to run the agency for the long haul would require Senate confirmation. News reports suggest that this won't happen. Berwick may not even receive a hearing.
http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Columns/2011/March/031111pollack.aspx
Yet another talented and highly qualified professional my be driven from public service by the mindless Republican partisan vendetta.
Yet another talented and highly qualified professional my be driven from public service by the mindless Republican partisan vendetta.
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