Health Care Reform Articles - July 23, 2011

Gang of Six’ plan drops long-term care provision

By Shira Schoenberg

Globe Correspondent / July 21, 2011

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/07/21/gang_of_six_plan_drops_long_term_care_provision/

Impact of health reform law debated

One expert says business and workers will benefit; another predicts higher rates in some regions.

By Susan M. Coverscover@mainetoday.com
MaineToday Media State House Writer

AUGUSTA — Health care experts disagreed Wednesday about the impact of new legislation that makes sweeping changes to the health insurance system in Maine.

But at least it's better than the status quo, said a spokesman for business interests.
"It is a legitimate attempt to try and change the status quo that was absolutely, in the eyes of the business community, not working for them," said Peter Gore, vice president of the Maine State Chamber of Commerce.
Gore served on a five-member panel Wednesday at a breakfast meeting at Maine Hospital Association headquarters. The forum was sponsored by the Maine Health Access Foundation, the Maine Medical Association, the Maine Development Foundation and Quality Counts.
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Deep health cuts brought Coburn back By: Matt DoBias July 20, 2011 05:12 PM EDT

A central figure in the Senate’s “Gang of Six” on Wednesday described what he called “ferocious” negotiations over additional cuts to Medicare and Medicaid that were needed to woo back Sen. Tom Coburn, the Oklahoma Republican whose return to the group helped cinch a plan to slash federal spending. Sen. Mark Warner, a charter member of the bipartisan group, said lawmakers from both sides of the political spectrum had to show some give before they released their deficit reduction blueprint on Tuesday. “I understood Sen. Coburn,” the Virginia Democrat said. “He wanted even more reductions in certain entitlement programs. He wanted specific policy adjustments that [Sen. Dick Durbin] and others did not.” http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=D61E7409-CEEA-4A65-914B-3B48207043CA July 22, 2011 New Path for Small-Town Doctors Starts in a Kansas Small Town By A. G. SULZBERGER SALINA, Kan. — This state, so sparsely populated in parts that five counties have no doctors at all, has struggled for years to encourage young doctors to relocate to rural communities, where health problems are often exacerbated by a lack of even the most basic care. On Friday, a new medical school campus opened here to provide a novel solution to the persistent problem: an inaugural class of eight aspiring doctors who will receive all their training in exactly the kind of small community where officials hope they will practice medicine. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/23/health/policy/23doctors.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=print For Medicare and Medicaid, drama By: J. Lester Feder July 21, 2011 10:47 PM EDT A default scenario is so unthinkable that not too many people have thought about what happens to Medicare and Medicaid if a deal isn’t reached. One longtime Washington health hand said he had not contemplated the overall picture of what happens after Aug. 2 without a deal because, “I think it’s unlikely, but it’s also kind of [too] horrible” to think about. http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=6AF64C20-0E95-4077-AD59-53FC7AD6636B