Today’s Selection Of Opinions And Editorials

Reform Needs Healthy Life Incentives The Wall Street Journal
Regulation that seeks to divorce insurance rates and coverage terms from health status would deter potential innovation that might provide meaningful financial incentives for healthy behavior and lower costs (Harrington, 6/29).

Time For Iron Man The Washington Post
Obama's initial approach of laying out principles and giving Congress latitude was the right response to Clinton's mistake of offering a detailed proposal, only to see it mocked and rejected. Yet two big problems confront health-care reform that only Obama's intervention can solve (Dionne, 6/29).

Tax your employee benefits? The Washington Times
Letting employers and employees deduct the cost of their health care is probably the most successful market-driven medical care reform we've made in this country. We shouldn't be cutting back on this benefit. On the contrary, we should be giving these same tax breaks to workers whose employers do not provide health care plans (Lambro, 6/29).

Here's Why US Health Care Is So Expensive The St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The first reason is that we're rich. ... Another big reason is paperwork. ... One final reason is so important that we'll examine it separately in a future editorial: Americans are more likely to receive intensive treatment (6/28).

Insurance Company Schemes The New York Times
As health care reform moves forward, Congress must impose tighter regulation of companies that clearly are not doing enough to regulate themselves (6/28). 

Selling Health Care? Watch What You Say. The Washington Post
The reality is that which side prevails in this battle will depend as much on which one has its messaging right as on which has its policies right (Westen, 6/28). 

State Doctor: Health Care Overhaul Won't Work Bellingham Herald
If enacted, the Administration's plan would represent the largest intrusion of government control into this country's health care since Medicare and Medicaid - perhaps even larger. It is not an exaggeration to say our entire health care system is at risk with this new plan (Stark, 6/27).

The Pitfalls Of The Public Option The New York Times
Even if one accepts the president's broader goals of wider access to health care and cost containment, his economic logic regarding the public option is hard to follow (Mankiw, 6/27).

What the Latest Polls Show on Health Care CQ Politics
Despite a desire for change, most people are happy with their own doctors and quality of care - and they don't want to risk losing either. ... In the complex debate of this big issue, polls can be used to support every side (Faucheux, 6/27).