Viewpoints: Can The Shutdown Save Affordable Health Care?; RFK Jr. Has Midcentury Soviet Ideas On Autism

The New York Times: These 6 Charts Explain Why Democrats Shut Down The Government
Over the past nine months, Republicans have gone a long way toward dismantling key Obamacare provisions under the misleading guise of reforming or improving our health care system. As a result, more than 20 million Americans face higher insurance premiums next year. And almost 14 million Americans could lose their health insurance altogether over the next decade — an estimated 3.3 million in 2026 alone. (Steven Rattner, 9/30)

The New York Times: The Real Stakes Of The Shutdown
As Republicans and Democrats trade blame for the government shutdown that began at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, and pundits opine about which side is winning, it is easy to lose sight of the real stakes. What the two parties are fighting about is whether Americans should have access to affordable health care. (10/1)

Stat: What RFK Jr.’s Approach To Autism Has In Common With The Soviet Union 
When it comes to developmental disability, the Kennedy legacy is as storied as anywhere else. In 1961, President John F. Kennedy appointed the President’s Panel on Mental Retardation (PPMR), a blue-ribbon initiative designed to put forward a national plan of action for what we today refer to as intellectual disability. Many of PPMR’s recommendations were present in the last bill Kennedy would sign before his assassination in 1963. They would be further advanced by his brother, Sen. Ted Kennedy, who in 1970 would champion the Developmental Disabilities Act, broadening the law to encompass other diagnoses (including cerebral palsy and autism) while establishing an infrastructure for research, rights protection, and services-planning that would bring tens of thousands out of institutions and into community life. (Ari Ne'eman, 9/30)

Stat: 4 Reasons Why Work Requirements Won’t Work For Medicaid 
One of the most contentious parts of President Trump’s recent tax bill is its requirement that “able-bodied” Medicaid recipients ages 19 to 64 (with some exceptions) go to work. Proponents say the policy will slash federal Medicaid spending and promote self-sufficiency, both laudatory goals. There is one big issue though. These rules are unlikely to work, based on history and my independent analysis of census data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation, or SIPP. (Mark V. Pauly, 10/1)

East Bay Times: How Our Health Information Can Be Used To Criminalize Us
In July, the Trump administration unveiled two policies: the “Making Health Technology Great Again” initiative and the executive order “Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets.” At first glance, one seems aimed at health care modernization and the other at public safety. But beneath their branding lies a shared infrastructure (and agenda) that poses a profound threat to the civil rights, privacy and bodily autonomy of millions of Americans. (Kate Caldwell, 9/30)