C-section boom in Boston. A virus stalks the NBA. A hospital apologizes to actor James Wood. Personhood at conception? Judge-directed malpractice settlements. GOP missing the boat on health care reform?
Class Warfare? More affluent Republicans favor reducing the deficit, while lower and middle-income Republicans side with Democrats and say that Washington should stay away from Medicare and Social Security.
Harvard School of Public Health Professor John McDonough asks why Republicans now reject free-market measures in the new health-reform law that they once proposed.
As you listen to pols argue about how deeply to cut Medicaid think about Natalie — an 85-year-old widow with heart disease and memory problems. Or Lisa — a 50-year old mother of two who has been battling multiple sclerosis since she was 20.
About half of respondents say they or a friend or family member has received Medicaid, and a similar share say the program is important to their family. Among the one in five respondents who personally have been covered by Medicaid.
Washington State would see a 26 percent cut in funding for Medicaid — the least of any state.
In new poll, 62 percent of seniors said they want Medicare to be left alone, but, overall, Americans are split with 50 percent of all polled saying they wanted Medicare to remain the same and 46 percent saying it should be changed.
Remember all those allegations from Republicans that the Affordable Care Act would inevitably lead to health care rationing? It turns out the same might be true of the House GOP budget plan for Medicare. At least that’s the conclusion of the Congressional Budget Office.
Some Republican leaders want to overhaul Medicare, a $520 billion program that covers nearly 47 million older and disabled Americans. Here’s a guide to some of the changes being discussed.
“There is an enormous reservoir of expertise and experience in the states,” says Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah. “And any federal reform of the nation’s health care system should take advantage of this state-based wisdom.”
Did House Republicans keep their promise to defund the health care overhaul as part of their bill to cut more than $60 billion from the federal budget for the rest of the fiscal year? You betcha.
Republicans want to slash funds for family planning clinics and eliminate federal support for Planned Parenthood, a major provider of reproductive health care in the U.S.
LocalHealthGuide is a health news and information web service for Seattle and the Puget Sound Region. We are independent and unaffiliated with any hospital, medical association or insurer. If you have questions or if your group has an upcoming event that you would like us to cover, please let us know by going to our "Contact Us" page and dropping us a note. -- Michael McCarthy, Editor
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Seattle Times Health News
Experts divided over recommendation to screen children for cholesterol
Some clinicians say universal screening is an important tool to help identify children who are genetically predisposed to high cholesterol and to pinpoint others who could benefit from treatment. Others express concerns that screening may do more harm than good.
People in state high-risk insurance plans often feel left behind
The federal health law set up new plans that are cheaper and more comprehensive than the older ones run by states but consumers need to go without insurance for six months to qualify.
Peeking in on your doctor’s notes
Although federal law guarantees patients the right to examine and get copies of their medical records, providers haven’t always made it easy to do so. But the movement to give patients direct access to their health information has picked up steam, and policymakers have encouraged it as a way to empower patients to help manage their health and their medical care.
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