Viewpoints: Lessons On Urgent Need To Lower Health Care Costs; Coming Revolution In Death Is Powerful, Filled With Grace
Opinion writers weigh in on these health care topics and others.
The Hill:
Here's How We Can Have 'Medicare For All' With A Private Option
According to CNN 2018 exit polls 41 percent of voters named health care as their most important issue.According to the New England Journal of Medicine, reducing health-care costs is top priority for 69 percent of Americans. A Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that 56 percent of the public supports "Medicare for all," but 74 percent wants to keep their existing insurance. Seventy-seven percent, including 69 percent of Republicans, favor allowing everyone to choose Medicare as their health insurance. (Thomas Bodenheimer, 8/12)
Los Angeles Times:
Column: Why The Short-Term Health Plans Trump Favors Are Cheap: They Shortchange You On Care
President Trump and other foes of the Affordable Care Act have made the expansion of short-term health plans a centerpiece of their campaign to gut the ACA. Their argument is that the plans, which the ACA limits to three-month nonrenewable terms, can bring cheaper coverage to millions of Americans supposedly burdened by the law’s mandate that every health plan offer certain minimum benefits. Two new statistical releases, however, reveal exactly why these plans are less expensive and less useful to the Americans Trump claims to be helping. (Michael Hiltzik, 8/12)
The Washington Post:
We’re In The Middle Of A Revolution On Death
The coming revolution in death — and Dick Shannon’s story — is laid out with uncommon wisdom in a powerful, new HBO documentary, “Alternate Endings,” which debuts Aug. 14. Only eight states and the District of Columbia have death-with-dignity laws, but three of those states — Hawaii, Maine and New Jersey — have put their statutes on the books within the past year. And 18 other states considered such laws in the 2019 legislative season. (Jon Meacham, 8/12)
Los Angeles Times:
In Med School, A Mission Found Me. But It Will Never Be Just A Job — Cancer And Grief Brought Me To It
A young widow who lost her husband to cancer nearly drowned in grief and medical debt. Now Fumiko Chino is a cancer doctor who sees her own tragedy play out in other patients. Too often people are underinsured and financially burdened by the cost of cancer care. Faced with a choice between their money and their lives, some patients lose both. Healthcare leaders must work to find ways to reduce costs and maintain policies that protect people from shoddy insurance. We must stop illness from triggering financial ruin. (Fumiko Chino and Nathan Gray, 8/11)
Bloomberg:
Lyme Disease Surge: Science And Policy Must Catch Up With Ticks
If your last hike in the woods ended with a tick trying to make a meal of you, you’re not alone: The tiny bloodsuckers have been ruining people’s summers for at least 5,000 years, and they’re enjoying a new golden age. By one measure, deer ticks have expanded their range in the U.S. by 50% since 1996; today they and their bloodsucking brethren are found in all 50 states. With ticks come tick-borne illnesses. Lyme disease is the most well-known. It can be very serious if left untreated, causing neurological and other damage — and it’s dramatically on the rise. The number of reported cases has soared since the U.S. started keeping track in the early 1980s, to about 30,000 annually, but scientists believe the actual incidence is at least 10 times higher. (8/12)
Los Angeles Times:
Editorial: Trump's Callous Attack On Immigrants Who Need Public Aid
The Trump administration is moving — again — to make it more difficult for even legal immigrants to get a foothold in the United States. Beginning in October, a new rule will make immigrants who use certain government safety-net programs ineligible for permanent residency, blocking their path to naturalized citizenship. The move, which is likely to be challenged in court, meshes with the administration’s other efforts to fundamentally change the nature of U.S. immigration from a focus on family reunification to one based on English proficiency, educational level and work experience. (8/13)
Stat:
Bringing Transparency To The Notion Of Price Transparency
I am heartened to see discussion burgeoning around the simple notion that the prices of health care services should be publicly available so consumers can shop for the best value. The current spotlight shining on the issue might make it seem like this is a new concept. In fact, the nonprofit organization I lead, FAIR Health, was founded to bring transparency to health care costs 10 years ago as part of the settlement of an investigation by New York state into conflicts of interest involving the adjudication of claims. (Robin Gelburd, 8/12)
Boston Globe:
Health And Stable Housing: Taking Preventative Medicine To The Next Level
Facing skyrocketing rents, the phrase “worried sick” is taking on a literal meaning for low-income families who struggle month to month to keep a roof over their head.That’s why the announcement last week that three big Boston hospitals — Boston Medical Center, Brigham and Women’s, and Boston Children’s — are partnering to spend $3 million to help poor families stay in their homes makes so much sense. By zeroing in on the close link between health and stable housing, the initiative is a model for taking a multidimensional approach to public policy. (8/12)
Colorado Sun:
Congress Should Save Coloradans From Sky-High Air Ambulance Charges
Air ambulances play a critical role in emergent medical transportation. They go above urban traffic, road conditions and challenging terrain to treat the sick and injured. ... When it comes to billing patients, however, air ambulances prices are sky-high. Our study, published in the July Health Affairs, found that in Colorado patients can expect to receive an average bill of around $44,000 for an air ambulance transport. ... Why are air ambulance charges so high? The simple answer is they can. (Ge Bai and Gerard F. Anderson, 8/12)
The Detroit News:
Community Health Centers Offer Solution To Health Care Crisis
What if we could help more people — especially the most vulnerable — access quality, affordable care that helps them live their best lives, saves money and provides a return on taxpayer dollar?With the Affordable Care Act under attack and “Medicare for All” on many people’s lips, it’s clear that the United States is ready for a national health care solution that works.What may surprise you is that one of the solutions is already here: Community health centers have been providing cutting-edge primary and preventive care services to the most vulnerable people in America for more than 50 years. In fact, 28 million people, including more than 700,000 in Michigan, rely on a community health center for care. (Dennis Litos, 8/12)
