Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: GOP Can't Be Trusted To Protect Preexisting Conditions; Lessons On Health Care That Saves Lives, Pocketbooks, Marriages
The Washington Post: No, Mick Mulvaney, Republicans Don’t Have A Respectable Record On Preexisting Conditions
Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney insisted Sunday that the 60 million Americans with preexisting medical conditions have no reason to fear President Trump’s new push to scrap Obamacare. “The debate about preexisting conditions is over,” he said. “Both parties support them, and anyone telling you anything different is lying to you for political gain.” He’s right that someone is being dishonest about preexisting conditions, but it’s not the Democrats. For nine years, Republicans have promised a silver-bullet policy that would adequately cover Americans without resort to big spending, mandates or costs to healthy people, if only the voters would let them govern. After voters put them in charge, they offered one half-baked plan after another and never could pass one. Mr. Mulvaney is either deluded or himself lying when he argues that Republicans have a respectable record on preexisting conditions. (4/1)
The Washington Post: If Trump Ends Obamacare, Keeping My Daughter Alive Will Wipe Me Out
My daughter Claire is 12, growing from a sweet child into a very opinionated teen, from a little girl who still enjoys looking through picture books and watching cartoons with her siblings into a young woman who prefers looking through magazines and watching full-length movies while eating M&Ms. As with most parents, watching my baby grow up is bittersweet. However, unlike most parents, I was not sure my daughter would ever make it to her teenage years. (Jamie Davis Smith, 4/1)
The New York Times: Republican Health Care Lying Syndrome
There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and Republican claims about health care. O.K., it’s not news that politicians make misleading claims, some more than others. According to a running tally kept by Daniel Dale of The Toronto Star, as of Monday morning, Donald Trump had said 4,682 false things as president. But G.O.P. health care claims are special, in several ways. (Paul Krugman, 4/1)
The Hill: The Trump Health Care Pivot
Health care is a big deal. It routinely ranks as the No. 1 or No. 2 issue that the American people care about most. Yes, it is even more important than the Russian collusion story. So, President Trump was absolutely right to pivot to health care as the book closed on the Mueller investigation. Of course, it would have been nice to tip off his friends and allies on Capitol Hill that such a pivot was coming. (John Feehery, 4/1)
USA Today: The ACA Is Under Threat By The Trump Administration
At a time when one in four Americans are forgoing needed health care because they simply can't afford to see their doctor or buy their prescription drugs, the Trump administration is making the situation worse.It is waging war on some of our country's most vulnerable people — children, the terminally ill, people with disabilities and the elderly — by urging the complete judicial repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Such an action would leave millions of families without health care coverage, their health care costs would increase exponentially, and our nation would erase hard-won protections for people with pre-existing conditions.Is this what making America great again looks like? (Frederick Isasi, 4/2)
The Wall Street Journal: The Case For Medicare For All
A single-payer health-insurance system can finance good-quality coverage for all U.S. residents while still reducing overall health-care spending by roughly 10%, according to a study I co-authored last November. All Americans would be able to get care from their chosen providers without having to pay premiums, deductibles or copayments. Other countries currently provide good health care to residents at a fraction of the U.S. cost. As of 2017, the U.S. spent $3.3 trillion on health care—17% of gross domestic product. Germany, France, Japan, Canada, the U.K., Australia, Spain and Italy spent between 9% and 11% of GDP on health care. Yet some measures—like those based on the amenable mortality rate, which tracks medically preventable deaths—rank the U.S. well below those countries. (Robert Pollin, 3/28)
