Investments in Community Health Centers May Improve the Economy Along with Health
Dr. Whelan was joined by Daniel Hawkins, Jr. of the National Association of Community Health Centers, Rebecca Keen-Fan Sze of the Wang Community Health Center and Stephanie Kenyon of the Loudoun Community Health Center for what I consider to be an enlightening discussion of the role of community health centers in the current American healthcare system and its changing role during the current age of health care reform.
Mission Accomplished!!!
On Tuesday, March 23, 2010 HR 3590: Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) was signed by the President to become Public Law 111-148. Truly a great day in history.
Humpday Humor
I choose Thompson’s cartoon this week because it is such a stark contrast to the recent behavior of the most powerful health industry organizations. They once did seem to be a fortress unable to be penetrated. What about now? Leave a comment and tell me what you think.
A Place at the Roundtable on Health Reform
As Senator Max Baucus’s June deadline quickly approaches, events continue to emerge suggesting in this iteration of health care reform, all stakeholders want to make sure that they are included in the discussion, rather than refusing to negotiate as they did during the early nineties. So when the White House announced it’s receipt of a letter from the chairmen of Americas’ Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), American Hospital Association (AHA), American Medical Association (AMA), Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed), Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) proposing approximately $2 trillion savings over the next decade, I saw it as the latest maneuver to ensure a seat at the roundtable for health care reform. These six organizations pledge to adhere to evidence-based best practices and right-sizing the use of health system resources in accordance with several strategies already proposed by the administration. I was surprised to see SEIU join with the providers and payers of the health care industry. Yet, this is not the first union of seemingly unlikely organizations. Just last month PhRMA united with the consumer health group Families USA (an ideological adversary) to promote the expansion of Medicaid. With a newly planned lobbying and media campaign, the strategic partnership seeks new policy to cover more low-income families, provide income-adjusted subsidies for middle-class families and cap out-of-pocket expenditures for people with insurance. President of PhRMA, William Tauzin explained the strategy in this way, “We got a new team in town who could, I guess, pass what they wanted to…our job is to make sure that what they pass has as many elements of our principles in them as possible, and that means being at the table.” This, I believe explains it all.
Humpday Humor
Tuesday with the Council on Foundations, Sebelius made her first public address since she was confirmed and quickly installed as the administration’s Secretary for Health and Human services last week. To highlight the urgency of the crisis, she states, “Approximately 30 cents of every health care dollar [is] spent on billing, overhead and administration. Spending on the uninsured and the health care bureaucracy takes up nearly one half of every health care dollar and results in a system where we all pay more and get worse results. ” The new Secretary went even further to say, “At the same time, the old opponents of reform have joined our effort to change the status quo. Groups and organizations that were once fierce enemies have come to the table and embraced the call for real health care reform.” There is great momentum (as so deftly illustrated by Matson above) for this issue right now and many conservative stakeholders are attempting to be proactive in their approach to stay ahead of that momentum. Yet, to say old opponents have joined the effort could be an overstatement. It leads me to say skeptically, “We shall see…” Tell me what you think? Will there be work and concensus building to get health reform out of committees by June? Will the democrats simply be forced to rely on their numbers as they did in passing the Recovery Act?
What Should Be the Vision for the Future of Academic Medical Centers
AMCs are vital to our health care system because they educate the next generation of health care and biomedical research professionals, they receive the majority of extramural funds allocated for basic science and applied research, and ultimately, they nurture the expertise to successfully treat and sometimes cure the medical maladies that plague us. These nonprofit organizations serve a disproportionate share of lower-income and uninsured patients in addition to individuals whose illnesses have the greatest degree of medical complexity. In his introduction, Dr. Mark McClellan of the Brookings Institution observed that members of the Council of Teaching Hospitals and Health Systems provide 41% of all charity care, receive 56% of all NIH extramural awards (along with AAMC medical schools), and train 76% of all residents physicians.
Humpday Humor
Many stakeholders and special interest groups may become uneasy as the Administration makes progress towards reforming health care. Considering the current state of the system, can we really make things worse or is there nowhere to go but up? Leave me a comment and tell me what you think about this week’s satire feature. Subscribe … Read more
Obama Makes Giant Steps towards a Full Health Care Team
Health and the 44th Presidential Administration (Part III). In three nearly back-to-back announcements, President Obama is working prodigiously to fill his leadership roster for health care. Of course, the most newsworthy was his selection of Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius as Secretary-designate of the Department of Health and Human Services. The White House Office of Health Reform, however will be lead by Nancy Ann DeParle who headed up the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services during the Clinton administration.
