Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Pros, Cons Of Barrett's Placement On Supreme Court
Los Angeles Times: Barrett On Supreme Court Won't Necessarily Kill The ACA
Unable to stop Republicans from hastily confirming Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, Senate Democrats have spent much of the past two weeks predicting that she will push the high court to kill the Affordable Care Act. And that, in turn, will leave more than 20 million Americans without health insurance during a pandemic, while also eliminating key protections for people with preexisting conditions.It’s a scary possibility, yet whether Barrett is the ACA’s executioner is far from certain. That’s true despite her now well-known (and not subtle) criticism of Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.'s reasoning when he voted in 2012 to uphold the ACA’s mandate that adult Americans maintain health insurance coverage. (John Healy, 10/26)
Boston Globe: Empty Promises Won’t Protect Americans’ Health Care
It’s not hyperbole to say that quality health care for millions of Americans with preexisting conditions hangs in the balance on Nov. 3. That should matter not just to them but to their relatives and families as well. If Democratic nominee Joe Biden wins the presidency and Democrats retake the Senate, the Affordable Care Act, along with its protections for those with preexisting conditions, stays. (10/26)
The Hill: The Painstaking, State-By-State Fight To Protect Abortion Access
Today the Senate is set to confirm Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court in a move that is as significant as it was expeditious. This is about much more than one Supreme Court appointment. Trump’s three nominations have radically altered the balance of our nation’s highest court, setting it on a collision course with the needs and the will of the vast majority of this country. (Andrea Miller, 10/26)
The Washington Post: Amy Coney Barrett Joins A Supreme Court That’s Largely Out Of Step With The National Consensus
Justice Amy Coney Barrett joins a court dangerously out of sync with the country. The nation is roughly evenly divided politically and has been for decades. Yet the court — now even more so with Barrett’s arrival — is dominated not only by Republican-appointed justices but also by muscularly conservative ones. The last time the court had a majority of justices nominated by a Democratic president was in 1969, when Abe Fortas resigned. In the years since, Republican presidents have named 15 of 19 justices. That’s right, Democrats have had only four nominees confirmed in the past half-century.It would be one thing is this were a reflection of Republican electoral dominance. It’s not. During that time, Democrats have won five of 12 presidential elections, and a plurality or majority of the popular vote in two more. (Ruth Marcus, 10/26)
CNN: Donald Trump Takes Supreme Court Victory Lap While Deceiving Over Worsening Pandemic
President Donald Trump claimed a place in history Monday when Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation secured a dominant conservative majority on the Supreme Court, but the pomp of his victory lap could not disguise the reality of a pandemic that has placed his presidency in deep peril a week before the election. A glittering ceremony on a crisp fall night at the White House carried deep political overtones that will only exacerbate the fury of Democrats who feel Republican maneuvering stole two Supreme Court seats. It will also inexorably drag the court further into toxic political combat that has already tainted its reputation for non-partisanship. (Stephen Collinson, 10/27)
The Hill: Americans Have A Choice: Socialized Medicine Or Health Care Freedom
As an emergency room physician and cancer survivor, I understand that each minute counts in a medical emergency. And as our nation chooses a direction on health care this November, we need to remember the realities that follow from government-run socialized medicine — increased taxes, longer wait times, delayed care and fewer incentives to maintain a healthy lifestyle. (Rep. Mark Green, 10/26)
The Hill: Lost Cures And Innovation, Too High A Price For Democrats' Drug Pricing Proposals
Democrats and Republicans alike can agree on one thing: prescription drug prices are unacceptably high. Predictably, however, we cannot seem to agree on a proper solution to this urgent issue. The Trump administration has, thankfully, kickstarted efforts and approved record numbers of generic drugs while simultaneously lowering overall prescription drug prices by 13 percent. It is our responsibility in Congress to keep this momentum going and establish permanent fixes to the current pharmaceutical pricing standards. Despite the efforts of Republicans to make bipartisan progress to reform the prescription drug standards, our Democrat colleagues refuse to collaborate. (Rep. Greg Steube, 10/26)
Los Angeles Times: Don't Shoo Homeless People Off Streets With Shelters
Homeless encampments have mushroomed across the landscape of Los Angeles — a testament to the alarming year-over-year increase in the homeless population, the severe lack of affordable housing and the city’s failure to find housing for everyone who, through some combination of poverty, bad luck and personal demons, ends up on a sidewalk. Even after the city finishes building the permanent supportive housing to which it has committed more than a billion dollars, there will simply not be enough to go around. (10/27)
