Viewpoints: Rise In Premium Costs; Medicare Flexes Its Power; Going Without Care In Va.

The Wall Street Journal: The Unaffordable Care Act
The Affordable Care Act was supposed to make insurance, well, more affordable. But now hard results are starting to emerge: premium surges that often average 10% to 20% and spikes that sometimes run as high as 50% or 60% or more from coast to coast. Welcome to the new abnormal of ObamaCare. This summer insurers must submit rates to state regulators for approval on the ObamaCare exchanges in 2016—and even liberals are shocked at the double-digit requests, or at least the honest liberals are. (7/10)

Los Angeles Times: As Health Insurers Merge, Consumers' Premiums Are Likely To Rise
As leading health insurers scramble for market share through a series of multibillion-dollar mergers, consumers are no doubt wondering if their premiums are bound to skyrocket. Short answer: Probably. "That's what usually happens when you have less competition," said Erin Trish, a researcher at USC's Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics. "At the same time, though, consolidation among insurers could mean a stronger position in negotiating lower rates with hospitals." The question, she said, is whether insurers would pass along any savings to policyholders. Past mergers among insurance companies suggest that consumers seldom benefit. (David Lazarus, 7/10)

The New York Times: Obamacare Flexes Muscles With New Medicare Payment Plans
For the first time, the Obama administration has deployed an important new power it has under the Affordable Care Act: proposing to pay doctors and hospitals based on the quality of care they provide, regardless of whether they want to be paid that way. It introduced two such programs this week. One would require all hospitals in 75 metropolitan areas to accept a flat fee for the costs associated with a hip or knee replacement — including the costs of surgery, medications, the joint implant and rehabilitation. And if the quality of the care is not judged to be good, Medicare will take back some of the money it paid. Another program would increase or decrease payments to home health agencies in nine states, depending on how they perform on certain quality measurements. (Margot Sanger-Katz, 7/10)

Forbes: How Device Makers Lose When Medicare Bundles Knee, Hip Surgery Fees
News that the Obama administration is shifting more Medicare dollars away from fee-for-service medicine when it comes to paying for knee and hip replacements could force device makers to become more competitive or lose sales. ... Bundled payments are already becoming more common among private insurers like UnitedHealth Group, Aetna, Cigna, Anthem and other Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans. Those involved in early bundled payment efforts for knee and hip replacements say the costs are lowered and it’s the device makers who tend to bring their prices down when surgeons go out for bid and become tougher negotiators in effort to get more of the “at risk” bundled payment for themselves rather than the device maker. (Bruce Japsen, 7/12)

The New York Times: The Inconceivable Success Of Obamacare
[T]he good news about Obamacare isn’t really debatable. It’s a simple fact that there has been a stunningly rapid drop in the number of uninsured, coming from multiple independent sources. It’s also a simple fact that outlays on Medicaid and exchange subsidies are coming in well below projections. ... But this wasn’t supposed to happen — and therefore, given the epistemology of the modern American right, it didn’t. Failure was inevitable, success inconceivable, and therefore failure must have happened. (Paul Krugman, 7/10)

Los Angeles Times: Obama's Contraceptive Mandate Still Rankles, But Why?
It's time for critics of the Obama administration's contraceptive mandate to drop the pretense. The fight is no longer about employers being required to pay for contraceptives, particularly "morning after" pills that some consider abortifacients. It's about employees being able to obtain them. The final rules released Friday, like the ones that have been in effect since last August, give religious-affiliated nonprofits and closely held for-profit firms an easy way to disassociate themselves completely from their employees' use of birth control. (Jon Healy, 7/11)

The Washington Post: What Denying Medicaid Expansion Looks Like
When the Virginia-Kentucky District Fair returned to Wise County recently, it brought funnel cakes and whole families smiling — a sight not too common here in the coalfields. This week, another gathering on the Wise County fairgrounds will see thousands of people standing in the bright summer sun: the 16th annual Remote Area Medical clinic. Some of those same families and their friends will be among those who travel to Wise not for fun rides or local band favorite Folk Soul Revival but for something lacking in this county, this state and this country: access to health care. (Matt Skeens, 7/10)

Albuquerque Journal: Medicaid A Big Plus For Tribal Health
Recently, there has been much discussion regarding funding of Medicaid Expansion programs in New Mexico. Very often missing from the discussion is how Medicaid is impacting tribal health programs and their primary health care delivery source, the Indian Health Service. ... If determined eligible, Medicaid provides free coverage to tribal members, is paid for by the federal government and increases access to health care providers outside of the Indian Health Service system. Medicaid Expansion is good for New Mexico, good for New Mexican tribes, good for Native Americans living in urban areas, costs the state nothing for tribal members and pours money into local economies. (Erik Lujan, 7/13)

The New York Times: Better Contraception For Young Women
Colorado has achieved remarkable reductions in the rate of teenage pregnancy in recent years by giving young women free, long-acting contraceptives that protect them for several years. The birthrate among teenagers in the state plummeted by 40 percent from 2009 to 2013 and teenage abortions dropped by 42 percent largely as a result of this initiative. ... Unfortunately, the private grant is running out and the department has been searching, so far unsuccessfully, for additional funds to keep the effort going. (7/13)

The Wall Street Journal: Government By The Pizza Slice
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday delayed rules requiring chain restaurants to post calorie counts on menus to help you make the hard call between a Whopper and double cheeseburger. The agency ordered more than it could eat, and it’s up to adults in Congress to fix the mess. (7/12)

The Wall Street Journal: YES: [A Tax On Sodas] Is an Effective Way to Cut Obesity And The Harm It Does
There is a long history of voters supporting taxes meant to protect health and to offset costs produced by products that can cause harm. It’s time to add sodas and sugary beverages to that list. ... Tobacco and alcohol taxes are now commonplace and are considered a permanent part of the public-health and economic picture. Soda taxes are likely to follow the same course and will provide considerable benefit in the U.S. and around the world. (Kelly Brownell, 7/13)

The Wall Street Journal: NO: The Health Benefits Are Far Less Than Claimed
Imposing a tax on sugary drinks is bad policy. It doesn’t solve the health problems it purports to address, creates new problems and leads to waste in the public sector. Just because the idea has gained traction among voters does not make it defensible. First and foremost, taxing sugary drinks does not reduce purchases enough to matter. Numerous studies find that consumption is persistent, despite higher taxes. (William Shughart II, 7/12)

The Detroit Free Press: Aging With Dignity Out Of Reach For Many In America
The White House Conference on Aging convenes Monday in Washington, providing a national opportunity to engage older adults, families, caregivers, advocates, community leaders and experts in the aging discussion. The dialogue comes at a crucial time for our country, as the U.S. population of older Americans is expected to double in the next 40 years. Our aging demographics have many wide-ranging implications affecting families, businesses, healthcare providers and communities. (Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., 7/11)

The New York Times: California’s Tough Vaccination Law
California sets a smart example for the nation by passing tough new laws that will require the vast majority of children in day care or kindergarten to be vaccinated against a slew of infectious diseases next year. The state will no longer grant exemptions based on a parent’s religious convictions or “personal belief” that vaccines might be harmful. It will only allow exemptions for children with medical conditions that make vaccination unsafe. This public health policy ought to be adopted by all states. (7/13)

The Kansas City Star: Kansas Invites Tragedy With An Inadequate Mental Health Network
The soul-searching over the dire implications of overcrowding at the Osawatomie State Hospital should extend to Kansas’ entire mental health system. Advocates argue convincingly that it is overburdened and underfunded at nearly all levels. A system that at one time was well regarded and innovative is staggering from high demand and too few resources. (7/11)

The Chicago Sun-Times: Brown: State's Waiting List Leaves Mentally Ill Woman Stuck In Jail
A month ago, I reported relief was in sight for a severely mentally ill woman being held at the Cook County Jail and in need of treatment. Unfortunately, it hasn’t arrived. On Friday, the Cook County public defender’s office filed a contempt motion against state mental health officials in hopes of getting an explanation for why they have yet to take custody of 41-year-old Veronica Gorlicki. (Mark Brown, 7/11)