Healthcare

A Little More Context for the Vote

By Justin Katz | March 21, 2010 |

As the national Democrat Party does back flips to pass its healthcare monstrosity, there’s are important bits of context of which we shouldn’t lose sight. The first is that: “Job loss has been a big factor in the loss of insurance coverage, but not the only one,” and job loss has been the sickly child…

Healthcare Whip Report

By Carroll Andrew Morse | March 20, 2010 |

As of 8:15 pm, Fox News says there are 217 votes in the House of Representatives in favor of passage of the Democratic healthcare reform bill (216 are necessary for passage). National Review Online is reporting that a Maryland Congressman has said that he’s “not sure” that the Democratic leadership needs the the Bart Stupak…

The Democratic Healthcare Penalty on Lower-Income Employees

By Carroll Andrew Morse | March 19, 2010 |

Here at Anchor Rising, we slog through the dreck, so you don’t have to! The paragraph below is some less-than-transparent text from the House reconciliation bill on healthcare “reform” (i.e. the dreck)…[SEC. 1003(b)] APPLICABLE PAYMENT AMOUNT — Section 4980H of such Code, as so added and amended, is amended– (1) in the flush text following…

Despite Health Care Mess, There are Points of Agreement

By Marc Comtois | March 12, 2010 |

Erstwhile Democratic presidential pollsters Pat Caddell (Carter) and Doug Schoen (Clinton) have penned a piece about the political prospects facing their party amidst the health-care drama. Yet, what caught my attention was their concise summary of the things upon which most everyone agrees: There are enough Republican and Democratic proposals — such as purchasing insurance…

Wanting (and Needing) a Different Kind of Reform

By Justin Katz | March 11, 2010 |

Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising, given the presumption of their label, but “progressives” have a tendency to assume that anybody who wants change wants their kind of change — as if there can only be one solution for reaching a given goal. Just about all conservatives, for example, really do desire world peace, but that…

Healthcare as Inspiration for Fealty

By Justin Katz | March 9, 2010 |

Further to Monique’s post about signs of the wisdom of the Democrats’ desired healthcare regime, I thought I’d beat the drum again with Mark Steyn’s Saturday column: … Look at it from the Dems’ point of view. You pass Obamacare. You lose the 2010 election, which gives the GOP co-ownership of an awkward couple of…

Red Flags that the Pending Healthcare Reform May not be a Good Idea

By Monique Chartier | March 9, 2010 |

(… in addition to the Constitutional issue – i.e., the legality of compelling everyone to purchase health insurance.) Much of the disagreement about whether the Democrats’ health care reform should proceed centers around its long term consequences. Supporters of the pending reform don’t see any problems long range if the bill passes. Opponents point to…

Obama’s Health Plan: Rhetoric vs. Reality

By Marc Comtois | March 4, 2010 |

The Foundry helpfully breaks down President Obama’s latest bid for health care reform: President Barack Obama gave yet another speech this afternoon urging Congress to pass his health care reform plan. The President again claimed his plan lowers health care costs. It doesn’t. The President again claimed his plan would not give government bureaucrats or…

Fundamental Differences Displayed

By Marc Comtois | February 26, 2010 |

Heritage’s Ed Haislmaier sums up the fundamental issue on display at yesterday’s healthcare snoozefest: The overriding reality behind this summit is that both the public and the politicians come to the table divided not over the details but rather over the basic approach to health reform. In his comments, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) highlighted three…

Doctors Point the Way to Reform

By Justin Katz | February 26, 2010 |

It should surprise nobody that I see this as evidence that healthcare reform must move in the free-market direction, not the government takeover and dictation direction: “Something has been discouraging physicians from working the long hours they used to work,” [Douglas Staiger, an economics professor at Dartmouth College] said. The cause? Bureaucracy and limits to…