Health Care and the States
In reviewing the constitutionality of health care reform, the Supreme Court said it would consider the legality of the Medicaid expansion included in the reform laEdit HTMLw. The question seems narrow, but it could have significant implications for redefining Congress’s spending power.
The only appellate court that even addressed this question, the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit,rejected the constitutional challenge. Having taken up the question, the Supreme Court should affirm that ruling. It would be a serious mistake for the court to use this case to restrict Congress’s authority by placing any additional requirements for the commitment of federal money.
Medicare chief steps aside in political impasse
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR | AP – 11 mins ago Obama’s Pick to Head Medicare and Medicaid Resigns Post
By ROBERT PEAR
WASHINGTON — Dr. Donald M. Berwick, the official in charge of Medicare and Medicaid, who became a symbol of all that Republicans dislike in President Obama’s health care policies, said on Wednesday that he was resigning.
His temporary recess appointment was due to expire at the end of the year. He will step down at the end of next week.
Medicare administrator Donald Berwick resigns in the face of Republican opposition
By Sarah Kliff,
President Obama’s top Medicare official has resigned in the face of Republican pledges to block his confirmation in the Senate.
Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Donald M. Berwick notified colleagues Wednesday that he will step down Dec. 2, nearly a month before the expiration of his recess appointment.
The White House will nominate Marilyn Tavenner, Medicare’s deputy administrator, as his replacement.
Support Builds for a Plan to Rein In Medicare Costs
By ROBERT PEAR
WASHINGTON — Though it reached no agreement, the special Congressional committee on deficit reduction built a case for major structural changes in Medicare that would limit the government’s open-ended financial commitment to the program, lawmakers and health policy experts say.
Members of both parties told the panel that Medicare should offer a fixed amount of money to each beneficiary to buy coverage from competing private plans, whose costs and benefits would be tightly regulated by the government.
Payments to Doctors by Pharmaceutical Companies Raise Issues of Conflicts
By EMILY RAMSHAW and RYAN MURPHY
Thousands of Texas doctors, researchers and medical experts — including more than 100 who are employed by the state and are paid with taxpayer dollars — routinely supplement their salaries with income from pharmaceutical companies.
Drug companies pay medical professionals for a wide range of activities, from speaking engagements to consulting. While legal, the practice raises questions about potential conflicts, and whether the interests of patients may be compromised.
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