Health Care Reform News – May 24, 2010

TOP STORIES

Gentiva to Buy Odyssey Health Care for Nearly $1 Billion; The Wall Street Journal – May 24, 2010

Gentiva Health Services Inc. agreed to acquire Odyssey HealthCare Inc. for nearly $1 billion, a combination that will create the largest U.S. home-health and hospice provider.

INSURANCE

Health Care Law Faces Test as Regulators Settle Which Plans Must Do What; The Washington Post – May 24, 2010

In keeping with Obama’s promise that you can hold on to your insurance if you like it, the new law leaves it to regulators to decide how much a health plan can change without giving up its grandfathered status. In other words, when does a health plan cease to be the same health plan?

TRANSPARENCY/SAFETY

Bishops Note Way Forward with Health Care, Clarify Misconceptions; United States Conference of Catholic Bishops – May 21, 2010

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is trying to clarify where they stand, or stood, on health reform in an open letter. 

STATE NEWS

Emmer vs. Others in Health Care Feud; The Pioneer Press – May 23, 2010

Last week, as the 2010 session deadlocked over a proposed expansion of health care for the poor, Minnesota lawmakers on both sides of the aisle made a decision with a potentially profound impact on the 2010 governor’s race – they hand the next governor the option of making the final decision.

Insurers May Slash Rates to Hospitals; The Boston Globe – May 24, 2010

Massachusetts health insurers say they want to freeze or slash payments to some hospitals and large physician groups this year, a move that could create tough contract negotiations and the potential for disruptions where patients get their care.

Candidates for Insurance Clash; Rome Tribune News – May 22, 2010

Federal health reform has raised the role of every state’s insurance commissioner, heating up the nine-way GOP primary for Georgia’s open seat.

Health Reform is Proving Quite Expensive; Charleston Daily Mail – May 24, 2010

President Obama and Democratic congressional leaders said their ‘Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’ of American health care would extend coverage to 31 million more people while reducing health care costs. Every armchair economist in the country knew that doing the first would make the second impossible.

MEDICARE/MEDICAID

Millions of Medicaid Kids Don’t Get Medical Exams; Chicago Tribune – May 24, 2010

Almost three-quarters of children on Medicaid in nine states are not getting all of their legally required medical, vision and hearing examinations, including immunizations, according to a new government study.

IMPLEMENTING THE LEGISLATION

The Gaming Begins; The New York Times – May 23, 2010

Few Americans know what a “medical loss ratio” is, but a fierce struggle over how to calculate it under the new health care reform law will determine how much insurers must spend on patient care and how much they can retain for administration and profits.

A Practical Guide Forward for Progressive on Health Care; Salon – May 24, 2010

Progressives’ post-health care reform funk is playing right into the hands of the GOP.

Health Reform Law Extends, Enhances Adoption Credit; Minnesota Public Radio News – May 23, 2010

Tucked into the 2,000-page federal health care law is a provision designed to defray adoption costs, about $1,000, to more than $13,000 for the costs of finalizing a domestic or foreign adoption.

EMPLOYERS

Plan to Seek Retiree Care Subsidy?  Don’t Delay; Business Insurance – May 24, 2010

A $5 billion federal program to partially reimburse private and public employers for retirees’ health care costs is about to begin, but employers who don’t act on the offer quickly may come away empty handed.

Study Points to Health Law’s Penalties; The New York Times – May 24, 2010

About one-third of employers subject to major requirements of the new health care law may face tax penalties because they offer health insurance that could be considered unaffordable to some employees. 

HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

High-Tech Alternatives to High-Tech Care; The New York Times – May 24, 2010

There is another broad transformation in health care under way, a powerful force for decentralized innovation. It is fueled in good part by technology – low-cost computing devices, digital sensors and the Web.

Medical Devices Drive Up Heart-Care Costs; The Philadelphia Inquirer – May 24, 2010

A study by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia VA Medical Center found that newer medical devices are a major reason why heart care costs are rising dramatically.

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