Viewpoints: Lessons On The Importance Of Understanding Medicare’s Quietly Declining Support Of Seniors; Families’ Financial Stability Very Shaky Until Surprise Medical Billing Is Stopped
Opinion writers weigh in on ways to lower health care costs and other health issues.
The Washington Post:
Trump Claims He Wants To Protect Seniors. He’s Actually Their Worst Enemy.
One reason Donald Trump is president and Hillary Clinton is not is because of the support of seniors. He received a majority of the vote from people over the age of 65 in 2016. He presented himself as their ally, vowing to protect Social Security and Medicare. But Trump is not the best friend of senior voters. He’s actually just about their worst enemy. If he’s elected to a second term, older Americans — and all those who care about them — will likely learn that the hard way. (Helaine Olen, 1/7)
The Hill:
Congress Must Address Surprise Medical Billing In 2020 — And Change Its Approach
Of the many problem areas that patients face as they navigate the health care system, the issue of unexpectedly high medical bills has been gaining more attention as more patients and their families are impacted. The practice of “surprise medical billing” by the health care industry can be as devastating to many American families as the injury or illness that affected them to begin with. When individuals unexpectedly visit the emergency room, for example, they tend to be under the impression that any tests, treatments, medications or doctor services will be covered by their insurance company. (Mario H. Lopez, 1/7)
Nashville Tennessean:
Health Care Knowledge Critical For Patients' Market Experience
Reductions in waste represent an enormous potential for the U.S. health system. Previous estimates claim that waste in U.S. healthcare could range between $500 billion to over $1.2 trillion per year, which could represent nearly one-third of all healthcare expenditures.While reducing wasteful spending in healthcare is unlikely to receive direct pushback from special interests, it does present a potential conundrum. Healthcare providers and technology manufacturers that depend on revenues at the current rates to support their business and future innovations would be reticent to accept potential losses of one-third or more. (William V. Padula and Harold E. Ford Jr., 1/7)
USA Today:
New Age And Flavor Rules On Smoking And Vaping Could Help Reduce Both
The Food and Drug Administration late last week announced its ban on the sale of mint- and fruit-flavored cartridge-based e-cigarettes, a move sure to put the FDA in the crosshairs of the vaping industry. I agree with the ban, because too many teens are using multiple flavored e-cigarette cartridges per day, and mint is the most popular Juul flavor. But menthol is becoming more popular, and the ban doesn't cover it. In fact, according to a new JAMA study based on the 2019 National Youth Tobacco Survey, both mint and menthol flavored e-cigarette use rose sharply after Juul restricted the availability of other flavors. (Marc Siegel, 1/7)
Stat:
Medicare Policy On Antirejection Drugs Imperils Kidney Transplants
As Medicare law currently stands, patients’ lives are at risk, donor kidneys are being neglected, and taxpayer money is being squandered. It’s time for change. That’s why I’m testifying before Congress Wednesday in support of lifetime Medicare coverage of immunosuppressive medications for kidney transplant recipients. As a transplant surgeon for nearly 20 years, I have witnessed firsthand the impact of this shortsighted policy. (Matthew Cooper, 1/8)
The New York Times:
Before The ‘Final Solution’ There Was A ‘Test Killing’
My first visit to the Aktion T4 killing site at Brandenburg an der Havel was in autumn. My destination, where 9,000 disabled people were murdered as part of the Nazi “euthanasia” program, is embedded in the activities of the town — trams and buses, stores, a bank, a cafe. The buildings that were once the old prison were mostly destroyed during the war. If not for dark gray letters painted on one side of the light gray building — GEDENKSTÄTTE, on one side, and its English translation, MEMORIAL, on another — the site could easily be passed unnoticed. From a distance, it looks prefab, temporary, perhaps an ad hoc extension to an overcrowded school or municipal department. (Kenny Fries, 1/8)
Washington Examiner:
The Case For Pre-Abortion Ultrasound Laws
For an unborn child, there is no place more dangerous than the inside of an abortion clinic. Although abortion is sold to the mother under the guise of “choice,” the child herself has no voice and no vote as to whether she will live or die .In my three decades serving women in this most vulnerable situation, I’ve heard countless stories of lives saved through the power of ultrasound. A true and vital “window into the womb,” an ultrasound is a unique chance for a mother and her significant others, including the father of the baby, to form a lasting bond with her unborn child. This is why an ultrasound before an abortion is essential. (Anne O'Connor, 1/8)
Seattle Times:
Washington’s U.S. Representatives Are Wrong To Join Anti-Abortion Push
More than 200 members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, all but two of whom are Republicans, clearly declared in a court filing this month their zeal to end abortions outweighs their regard for judicial precedence.Disappointingly, Washington’s Republican representatives have all joined the call for the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn decades of abortion rulings. U.S. Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Dan Newhouse signed the legal brief. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, who has a long history of voting and speaking out against abortion rights, said through a spokesperson that she supports the filing. (1/7)
Boston Globe:
Let Nurse Practitioners Work Alone
Legislation currently pending on Beacon Hill would move Massachusetts into the mainstream by loosening the restrictions on nurse practitioners, highly trained professionals who are certified to provide primary and specialty care and could easily be treating more of those coughs and muscle cramps than they do now. (1/8)
