WASHINGTON -- The health insurance industry presented itself as an ally of President Barack Obama's health care law while at the same time making hefty contributions to members of Congress who are trying to get rid of it, according to contribution records.

Between January 2007 and August 2012, the political action committees of the 11 largest health insurance companies and their primary trade group gave $10.2 million to federal politicians. Nearly two-thirds of the total went to Republicans who oppose the law or support its repeal, according to the Center for Public Integrity's analysis of Federal Election Commission filings.

The 11 top companies, according to the Fortune 500 list, controlled 35 percent of the industry in 2011, according to data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The top industry trade group is America's Health Insurance Plans.

Much of the money rolled in as health insurance industry leaders showed support for the Democrats' reform efforts.

"We are ready to be accountable to these (new) rules," Karen Ignagni, AHIP's president and chief executive officer told the Senate Finance Committee in May 2009, roughly a year before Obama's landmark legislation was signed into law. And a month after Obama's Affordable Care Act became law in March 2010, Ignagni said her organization was "strongly committed" to its "successful implementation."

Likewise, Ron Williams, then chairman and chief executive officer of Aetna, the country's

"I believe that President Obama and this Congress have charted a course of change," Williams said in a June 2009 statement. "I want to make clear that we too are committed to expanding access, controlling costs and improving the quality and value of care people receive."

But Williams, who left Aetna in April 2011, this past June penned a Wall Street Journal op-ed calling for health care reform at the state level and criticizing the federal law's mandate.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., ranks as the top recipient of political action committee money from the top insurers since 2007, according to the center's analysis. Cantor, a tea party favorite and one of the law's most vocal critics, has received about $258,000 from AHIP and the top industry PACs.

In January 2011, Cantor introduced the Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act, the first of 33 repeal efforts that have reached the House floor.

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Insurers praised Democrats, gave to GOP

Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare

Documentary. Directed by Matthew Heineman and Susan Froemke. (PG-13. 99 minutes.)

The earnest and well-made documentary "Escape Fire" offers an X-ray of what's ailing the American health care system and prescribes a number of sensible solutions. That the movie largely sidesteps partisan politics will no doubt irk some viewers, but may just be its greatest strength.

The film is surprisingly optimistic, arguing that there are genuine, practical answers to many of the problems afflicting the system, and some are already being adopted.

The issues are familiar to anyone who pays even remote attention to the news: Americans are overly dependent on drugs, lead sedentary lives and often eat poorly; unnecessary tests and treatments are commonplace; primary-care physicians are being squeezed from all sides as dollars flow to specialists and expensive high-tech treatments; the health care industry is under enormous pressure to produce profits and is frighteningly efficient in lobbying against change.

Medical reporter Shannon Brownlee says that tens of thousands of Medicare recipients die each year from unneeded treatments. And Oregon's Dr. Erin Martin offers testimony from the front lines as she struggles with having less and less time to spend with her indigent patients, a situation that's replicated across the system.

The movie gives ample screen time to some familiar advocates for change: Dr. Andrew Weil, who says we need to shift our emphasis from disease intervention to disease prevention; and Dr. Dean Ornish, who urges personal lifestyle changes as a key to any serious reform. As an example of what such changes can achieve, we're given a look at Safeway's employee health program, which has helped the company trim costs.

The film is perhaps at its most compelling in recounting the story of combat veteran Sgt. Robert Yates, who became addicted to drugs prescribed to treat his post-traumatic stress disorder. Through the use of nontraditional treatments including acupuncture and meditation, Yates battles his way out of dependency. "Escape Fire" indicates that the U.S. military is looking seriously at this kind of alternative therapy.

The title, by the way, refers to a blaze set to allow smokejumpers to escape a wildfire, and suggests the kind of unconventional thinking that's needed to alter the health care system.

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'Escape Fire': Diagnosing health care ills

President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney talk at the end of the first presidential debate in Denver, Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2012.

Charles Dharapak, Associated Press

Eric Schulzke seems to perpetuate the notion that Romneycare and Obamacare are roughly the same ("How health care reform came to be," Oct. 2). This notion needs to be challenged as they are not the same. Romneycare is not the same as Obamacare.

First of all, Romneycare has no effect on me whatsoever. It has no effect on the citizens of Utah or any of the other states. The citizens of Massachusetts like it. They voted for it. If they do not like it, they can change it because alternative systems are still available.

When Obamacare gets fully entrenched it will literally destroy all of the alternative health care systems. All of the existing health insurance companies will be put out of business. All of their employees will be laid off; equipment and facilities will be sold or discarded and when they are gone it will be almost impossible to get them back.

Romneycare is more like an experiment in providing health care, is relatively small and run by a local state government. Obamacare will be 50 times bigger than Romneycare and will be run from Washington, D.C. It will not provide affordable health care for the American people. It will be a colossal nightmare.

Blaine R. McCann

Pleasant Grove

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Letter: Health care differences: Romneycare is not the same as Obamacare

Health care was mentioned about six minutes into Wednesday night's presidential debate.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

(CNN) -- During the first presidential debate Wednesday night, the candidates talked a lot about how they would lower the cost of your medical care.

Heavy on data and large numbers, the debate may not have been the easiest to follow for Americans interested in the subject.

Ken Thorpe, an Emory University economist who specializes in health care costs, may have been one of the few excited by all these numbers.

"It was about as substantive a debate as I think we've ever seen," Thorpe said. "The problem is, even after this debate, I don't think people truly understand the similarities and the differences in what these candidates are proposing for health care."

Here are five things you should know about what the candidates said about health care in last night's debate:

1. You do pay more for health insurance, but Obama's policy isn't totally to blame.

The first mention of health care came about six minutes into the debate. Discussing how "middle-income Americans have been buried" financially under the president's policies, Republican challenger Mitt Romney said health care costs have gone up by $2,500 a family.

Each year, health care costs have gone up during Obama's administration -- that is true. But experts say the increases have not been due to policy, but because of the rising cost of health care. The figure Romney used is not quite right.

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5 things to know about health care post-debate

On health care, Mitt Romney and President Obama sometimes seemed to inhabit parallel universes at their debate on Wednesday night - with separate sets of assumptions, beliefs and even facts - it was on the question of health care, and government's role in providing it.

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On Health Care, Two Visions With Their Own Set of Facts

Published: Thursday, October 4, 2012 at 9:17 p.m. Last Modified: Thursday, October 4, 2012 at 9:17 p.m.

Some of the officials charged with recommending one of the three are already albeit tentatively eyeing favorites.

Munroe's overseers, the Marion County Hospital District trustees, are looking to potentially lease the 421-bed facility. The public, nonprofit hospital is struggling financially and lacks money to expand and remain competitive.

In November, voters will be asked to approve a one-mill property tax measure that would support the hospital. The tax would generate an estimated $65 million over five years. If the referendum passes, the trustees are expected to forgo any new lease agreement for the foreseeable future.

In the meantime, the trustees are considering outside proposals.

On Tuesday, Duke LifePoint Healthcare, a joint venture between Duke University Health System, Inc. and LifePoint Hospitals, made a two-hour pitch.

That was followed by a two-hour presentation from a partnership between Health Management Associates and Shands HealthCare.

On Wednesday, Community Health Systems rounded out the presentations with a pitch as to why it should be allowed to operate the hospital as part of a 40-year lease proposal.

The presentations were made to the trustee-formed, eight-member Strategic Options Workgroup, which will make recommendations to all of the trustees. Some members of the public also attended.

"I don't think anyone provided a knockout," said Randy Klein, a workgroup member. "I'm like the undecided voter."

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Health care suitors make pitches for Munroe

03-10-2012 22:39 Mitt Romney says the costs to small business to implement "Obamacare" will hurt new hires.

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Presidential Debate 2012 on Health Care: Mitt Romney Says 'Expensive' 'Obamacare' Hurts Job Growth - Video

04-10-2012 10:14 "The American [health care] system is more expensive than the Canadian system," says Michel Kelly-Gagnon, president of the Montreal Economic Institute. "To that, I answer that a Mercedes is indeed more expensive than a Toyota Corolla." "Thank god for that," he says, explaining that innovation depends on early adopters who are far more likely to be well-off and pay high rates for new and better options. That doesn't mean only the rich benefit, though. "Certain treatments that are only available to the richest people," he says, "will eventually become more economical and the whole world will benefit." Kelly-Gagnon says that some variation on universal coverage is already a "political reality" in most developed countries, where citizens don't let large numbers of people die from curable diseases. But the focus on coverage rates obscures the problems created by single-payer systems such as Canada's, where costs are kept down via rationing and long wait times for services taken for granted in the United States. "Once you've established that [universal coverage] is how it's going to be," says Kelly-Gagnon, the real question is "how do you find more private solutions" that will serve more people at better rates. About 3.20 minutes. Produced by Anthony L. Fisher. Camera by Josh Swain. Visit for downloadable versions and visit to subscribe to our videos.

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Why US Health Care Costs More Than Canada's: "A Mercedes Costs More than a Corolla" - Video

Details Published on Thursday, 04 October 2012 00:00 Written by AMADO P. MACASAET

It is becoming clear that health care is being used by the supporters of heavy taxes on smoke as a ploy or cover to collect more money from the tobacco industry.

The authors and supporters of HB 5727, the new excise tax proposal, are making us look like fools by making us believe the rates in the bill must be applied for the sake of the health of smokers.

The truth is there is money P50 billion of it, according to Senator Ralph Recto which should be remitted to PhilHealth and to the Department of Health for one single purpose health care.

Recto, chairman of the Senate ways and means committee yesterday repeated his charge that there is at least P12.5 billion from cigarette excise tax that should have been remitted to the Department of Health to fight smoking-related diseases notably lung cancer.

Obviously, the Department of Budget and Management which unconditionally support heavier taxes on cigarettes, never remitted the tax money to the Department of Health. But some lawmakers ably aided by the Department of Finance want more money from the cigarette makers.

It is becoming clear that health care is being used by the supporters of heavy taxes on smoke as a ploy or cover to collect more money from the tobacco industry. They have raised enough but the money is not used for the purpose they say it will be used for, that is to fight smoking-related diseases.

The refusal of the DBM to release the money to the Department of Health is a clear violation of RA 9334 which states that two and a half percent of the incremental revenue from excise on alcohol and tobacco products starting January 2005 shall be credited to the account of the Department of Health and constituted as a trust fund for its disease prevention program.

Another 2.5 percent from the same sources shall be remitted directly to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. for the purpose of meeting and sustaining the goal of universal coverage of the National Health Insurance Program.

In other words, 5 percent of excise tax collected from sin products is clearly intended for health care.

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Philippine Business News | Online News Philippines

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 4, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Independence Blue Cross (IBC) is proud to announce that Christopher Cashman, executive vice president and president of commercial markets, will join other health care leaders at an annual industry conference this afternoon hosted by the Greater Philadelphia Association of Health Underwriters (GPAHU). Cashman will speak at the conference on how IBC is embracing change and investing in new ways to enhance its customers' health and wellness, lower costs, and improve the quality of care.

"This is a time of remarkable transformation in health care. We are committed to exceeding our customers' expectations through innovative health and wellness solutions, and that means embracing change," said Cashman. "It's a privilege to have the opportunity to speak today at the annual GPAHU conference. At Independence Blue Cross, we value our strong relationship with brokers, agents, and consultants and the guidance they provide our customers."

The conference began at 9 a.m. today in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, with keynote speaker Pennsylvania State Insurance Commissioner Michael F. Consedine. Cashman is co-presenting with regional leaders from the health insurance industry on embracing change now that the health care reform law has been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.

During the conference, Cashman will discuss how IBC is boldly leading the transformation of health care in the region. IBC is pioneering innovative ways to partner with hospitals and physicians to reward them for higher--quality, more coordinated care. IBC also offers innovative programs to help its members take an active role in making healthier choices

About Independence Blue Cross

Independence Blue Cross is a leading health insurer in southeastern Pennsylvania. With our affiliates, we have 3.1 million members nationwide. For nearly 75 years, we have been enhancing the health and wellness of the people and communities we serve by delivering innovative and competitively priced health care products and services; pioneering new ways to reward doctors, hospitals, and other health care providers for coordinated, quality care; and supporting programs and events that promote wellness. To learn more about how we're changing the game, visit http://www.ibx.com. Connect with us on Facebook at ibx.com/facebook and on Twitter at @ibx. Independence Blue Cross is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

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Independence Blue Cross Executive to Speak on the Changing Health Care Market

The debate over President Barack Obamas health-care law has taken another twist. Now conservatives and libertarians are defending it, while the administration tries to toss part of the legislation out.

The reason for this role reversal is that the drafters of the law outsmarted themselves and handed their opponents a weapon. Now they would like to pretend the law doesnt say what it does.

Obamas plan makes tax credits available to people who get health insurance from exchanges set up by state governments. If states dont establish those exchanges, the federal government will do so for them. The federal exchanges, however, dont come with tax credits: The law authorizes credits only for people who get insurance from state-established exchanges. And that creates some problems the administration didnt foresee, and now hopes to wish away.

Legislative debate over the law didnt go into great detail about these provisions. We can surmise what happened, though. Supporters of the legislation wanted to encourage states to set up the exchanges. So they offered the states a deal: If they did so, they would get to write their own rules, and their citizens would be able to get the tax credit. The states would also gain extra flexibility on Medicaid spending. The laws supporters also expected the health-care law to become more popular over time.

That hasnt happened. Many states are determined in their opposition, and few of them have set up exchanges. If they dont do so, the tax credits dont go into effect and the federally established exchanges wont work: People wont be able to afford the insurance available on them without the subsidy.

States have another incentive to refrain from setting up exchanges under the health-care law: It protects companies and individuals in the state from tax increases. The law introduces penalties of as much as $3,000 per employee for firms that dont provide insurance but only if an employee is getting coverage with the help of a tax credit. No state exchanges means no tax credits and thus no employer penalties. The law also notoriously penalizes many people for not buying insurance. In some cases, being eligible for a tax credit and still not buying insurance subjects you to the penalty. So, again, no state exchange means no tax credit and thus fewer people hit by the penalty.

The administrations response to the impending failure of its signature legislation a failure resulting entirely from its flawed design has been to ignore the inconvenient portion of the law. In May, the Internal Revenue Service decided it would issue tax credits to people who get insurance from exchanges established by the federal government. It has thus exposed firms and individuals to taxes and penalties without any legal authorization. Obviously, that situation sets the stage for lawsuits.

The plaintiffs will have a strong case. Jonathan Adler and Michael Cannon two libertarians, the first a law professor at Case Western Reserve University and the second a health-care analyst at the Cato Institute have done more than anyone to bring attention to this issue. They point out that every health bill advanced by Senate Democrats clearly made tax credits conditional on states establishment of exchanges. They have also uncovered that during the debate over the bill, Sen. Max Baucus, a Democrat from Montana, explicitly said the same thing.

Supporters of the health-care law may be tempted to dismiss the challenge to the IRS. That would be to repeat a mistake. They were contemptuous of the constitutional case against the law, too. Timothy Jost, a Washington and Lee University law professor, even wrote that the attorneys who brought the suits should face professional sanctions for filing frivolous cases. In the end, the Supreme Court sided with the plaintiffs on their constitutional claims, in one case by a 7-2 margin, upholding the law only by removing parts of it.

There will be many more court battles over the health-care law, because it involves so many legally dubious expansions of bureaucratic power. In addition to the IRS move, there are lawsuits against the administrations ruling that almost all employers must provide coverage for contraception and sterilization, a decision that conflicts with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The law also creates a board of experts to control health-care costs, a move that is sure to bring legal action on separation-of- powers grounds.

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OPINION: Flaws that will unravel Obama’s health plan

MELVILLE, N.Y., Oct. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Henry Schein, Inc. (HSIC), the world's largest provider of health care products and services to office-based dental, medical and animal health practitioners, today announced a new five-year agreement with the Henry Schein Cares Foundation, Inc. and the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) to increase access to care for underserved communities. Under the new agreement, NACHC will participate in two Henry Schein Cares flagship initiatives: Henry Schein's Global Product Donation Program and the Healthy Lifestyles, Healthy Communities initiative.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121004/NY86519 )

Under the agreement, every two years 10 new NACHC member health centers will participate in Henry Schein's Global Product Donation Program and each receive donated dental and medical products for a term of two years, valued at between $5,000 and $25,000. To learn more about the Global Product Donation Program, please visit: http://www.hscaresfoundation.org/globalproductDonation.asp.

In addition, approximately 10 NACHC member health centers will each annually receive Healthy Lifestyles, Healthy Communities grants. The Henry Schein Healthy Lifestyles, Healthy Communities initiative promotes access to health care, prevention, and wellness for at-risk and underserved communities by providing free medical and oral health screenings for thousands of children and their caregivers at events around the country.To learn more about the Healthy Lifestyles, Healthy Communities Program, please visit: http://www.hscaresfoundation.org/healthylifestyles.asp.

"The new partnership between Henry Schein and NACHC underscores our shared strong commitment to helping America's community health centers deliver excellent quality care to all," said Stanley M. Bergman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Henry Schein, Inc. "Through Henry Schein's expertise and our comprehensive range of offerings covering the full spectrum of medical, oral health, and technology solutions, we are proud to support the role of community health centers as health homes to tens of millions of patients around the country. And through this new partnership, we are gratified to further enhance the ability of community health centers to 'help health happen' for those in need through their participation in our Global Product Donation and Healthy Lifestyles, Healthy Communities programs."

Henry Schein's program, "HealthHome: Solutions for Coordinating Prevention and Wellness" provides full spectrum medical and oral health support to the nation's community health care centers, including supplies and equipment; electronic health care records software; health center design and planning; and 340B, diagnostic, and influenza vaccine programs. As part of Henry Schein's strong support of community health centers across the country, the Company also recently provided financial sponsorship, on-site volunteers, executive speakers, and other support for National Health Center Week 2012 events in California, North Carolina, Colorado and Missouri.

"We are pleased to enter into this partnership with Henry Schein and Henry Schein Cares Foundation," said Tom Van Coverden, President and CEO of the National Association of Community Health Centers. "The partnership represents the commitment of the parties to improve health care for the most vulnerable people in America. The two signature programs that will be made available to a number of community health centers over the period of the partnership will result in increased resources for health centers as well as improved access to care for patients in underserved communities."

About the National Association of Health CentersThe National Association of Community Health Centers was founded in 1971. Its mission is to promote the provision of high quality, comprehensive and affordable health care that is coordinated, culturally and linguistically competent, and community directed for all medically underserved populations. NACHC represents over 1,200 health centers that serve more than 20 million patients at over 8,000 sites in the United States and its territories.

About Henry Schein Cares and the Henry Schein Cares Foundation, Inc.Henry Schein Cares, Henry Schein's global corporate social responsibility program, stands on four pillars: engaging Team Schein Members to reach their potential, ensuring accountability by extending ethical business practices to all levels within Henry Schein, promoting environmental sustainability, and expanding access to health care for underserved and at-risk communities around the world. Health care activities supported by Henry Schein Cares focus on three main areas: advancing wellness, building capacity in the delivery of health care services, and assisting in emergency preparedness and relief. Firmly rooted in a deep commitment to social responsibility and the concept of enlightened self-interest championed by Benjamin Franklin, the philosophy behind Henry Schein Cares is a vision of "doing well by doing good." Through the work of Henry Schein Cares to enhance access to care for those in need, the Company believes that it is furthering its long-term success.

Established in 2008, Henry Schein Cares Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, works to foster, support, and promote dental, medical, and animal health by helping to increase access to care for communities around the world.

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Henry Schein and Henry Schein Cares Foundation Partner with National Association of Community Health Centers to ...

President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney had at it out over health care Wednesday night providing some of the toughest, and wonkiest, moments of the night.

Both candidates also showed they had done their research, citing studies to back their claims about Obama's health care law and how the other would cut Medicare spending but they both managed to stretch the truth.

Here are the highlights of their claims in Wednesday nights debate:

Romney claim: On Medicare, for current retirees, hes cutting $716 billion from the program.

Misleading. If Romney had worded his statement more narrowly for example, by saying only that Obama is cutting Medicare spending by $716 billion it would have been true. That is the amount of spending the health reform law will save by reducing payments to Medicare providers and private Medicare Advantage plans. But Romney said it in a way that suggests that the cuts will come out of current retirees pockets, by slicing their benefits, and that framing stretches the truth.

Obama claim: The Republican Medicare plan would cost the average senior about $6,000 a year.

Questionable. Obama covered himself by pointing out that this estimate applied to Paul Ryans original Medicare plan. At the time, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think tank, estimated that the plan would shift nearly $6,400 in costs to seniors. But that plan had a hard limit on how much could be spent on Medicare each year and Romneys campaign insists that his plan has no such limit.

Obama doesnt buy Romneys argument that competition among private plans alone will bring down costs. He argued that Medicare has lower administrative costs than private insurance does, and that if you are going to save any money through what Gov. Romney's proposing is that the money has to come from somewhere. But he did acknowledge that Romneys plan is different from the Ryan plan and that in fairness, what Gov. Romney has now said is he'll maintain traditional Medicare alongside it.

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Analyzing health-care statements

How can a compassionate humanity meet the health care needs of the more than 2 billion people who live on less than $2 per day? As chairman of the Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development, Klaus M. Leisinger works to alleviate poverty-related health problems in the developing world at three levels: on-the-ground assistance with health care services and medicine; connecting global health ...

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Toward Health for All

On health care, Mitt Romney and President Obama sometimes seemed to inhabit parallel universes at their debate on Wednesday night - with separate sets of assumptions, beliefs and even facts - it was on the question of health care, and government's role in providing it.

Excerpt from:

The Caucus: On Health Care, Two Visions With Their Own Set of Facts

By Russ Britt, MarketWatch

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) Investors in hospitals started heading for the exits in the wake of President Barack Obamas lackluster debate performance by selling off shares in virtually all companies in the sector early Thursday.

With the prospect that Obama who spearheaded the health-care overhaul bill that gives aid to hospital balance sheets could be vulnerable in his re-election bid against Republican Mitt Romney, shares plunged even though the broader market enjoyed substantial gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average /quotes/zigman/627449 DJIA +0.68% was up more than half a percent, as was the S&P 500. /quotes/zigman/3870025 SPX +0.67%

A review of Wednesday night's debate between Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama, and a look at how to get a handle on health-care spending.

Most analysts agreed that Romneys aggressive tack in Wednesdays debate gave him the edge over the incumbent Democrat. Romney has vowed to repeal the health-care bill, which would force hospitals to return to the practice of writing down large chunks of revenue due to those unable to pay for medical care.

Thats making investors nervous, since the debate raised the prospect that Romney could unseat Obama.

By requiring more people to get coverage, the health-care overhaul bill is expected to cut back on the bad debt that virtually all hospitals record on their balance sheets, since they cant turn away patients in emergencies.

In a morning note to clients, CRT Capital Group analyst Sheryl Skolnick said: After an at-best lackluster and at-worst pitiful performance by President Obama in last nights debate, health care investors have to be wondering this morning whether the reform-on play of the last several weeks is the right one going into the Nov. 6 election.

She added: Investors who are long hospital stocks this morning should be thinking, Thanks a lot, Mr. President, at least in our view.

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Health-care Stocks: After debate, hospital investors head for exits

02-10-2012 21:12 Molly Ball, political correspondent for The Atlantic, and Dave Sirota, contributor and co-host of "The Rundown with Sirota & Brown," join "Viewpoint" host Eliot Spitzer to consider how President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney will approach the subject of health care during the first presidential debate in Denver, Colo. Tune in Weeknights at 8e/5p on Current TV

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Obama vs. Romney: Who has the advantage when debating health care? - Video

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Doctors in Kenya's public hospitals on Wednesday spent their 17th day on strike to protest the dilapidated state of public health care. Emergency rooms in some of Kenya's public hospitals frequently don't have gloves or medicine, and power outages sometimes force doctors to use the light from their phones to complete a procedure.

Kenya's government fired 1,000 of the 2,000 striking doctors last week despite a shortfall of skilled medical practitioners. The government had promised to implement reforms in health care last year after doctors walked off the job and held protests.

At least two patients have died due to lack of treatment since the strike started, union officials say, but the government claims health facilities are coping well without the striking workers.

Attempts to hold talks this week with officials from the Ministry for Medical Services failed, prompting the doctors to flood social media with tell-all stories about deplorable conditions in public hospitals.

"Tuberculosis patients meant to be isolated yet they are sharing beds in the corridors meant for walking which have been converted to wards," Dr. Stanely Aruyaru said in a Twitter posting.

"It is a pity for someone to survive an accident but die in hospital because there is no blood, no Intensive Care Unit, no cervical collar, no splints and now no doctor," said Dr. Allan Kochi from the Nyeri provincial hospital in the Central Kenya. Dr. Nelly Bosire, the union representative, confirmed that the postings were authentic.

Dr. Fredrick Oluga, told The Associated Press how in mid-August he was called in to help remove the placenta from a woman that was stuck after she had just given birth. Oluga said that that when he arrived there was no electricity at the Vihiga district hospital in western Kenya and the standby generator did not have fuel. And the hospital did not have gynecological gloves for the procedure, he said.

"The patient was bleeding profusely and I had to act quickly so the nurse pointed light from her phone for me to conduct the procedure," Oluga said. He said twice this year he had to use light from a mobile phone and that such incidents are fairly common across the country.

Health care has been in a deplorable state in Kenya for a long time, but the country's poor and many in Kenya think the state of health care is the norm, said Bosire, the Nairobi branch chairwoman of the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacist and Dentist Union.

Bosire said middle class and rich Kenyans do not realize the problems in public health facilities until they are forced to seek treatment there when treatment in private hospitals becomes too expensive. Public hospitals charge far less than private hospitals, where politicians and top government officials seek treatment, Bosire said.

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Kenya: Doctors strike over poor health care

By Damian Paletta and Sara Murray

The Romney campaign on Wednesday clarified that a proposal it floated earlier in the week that would put in place a new cap on tax deductions would not affect the pre-tax health care insurance premiums many Americans pay.

On Monday, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney said he might pursue an overhaul of the tax code that lowered rates but capped the deductions middle-class Americans took at $17,000. Upper-income earners would have an even lower cap. Roughly 30% of tax filers itemize deductions, and on average they claim $26,000 in deductions.

Mr. Romney gave three examples of deductions that could be subject to the cap.

1) The mortgage-interest deduction

2) Charitable contributions

3) And health care.

He didnt go into more detail on what he meant by health care, but the single largest tax break is the exclusion of employers contributions for health care and health insurance premiums, according to the Congressional Budget Office. (On your paycheck, chances are the amount that is deducted for your health insurance premium isnt part of the portion you are taxed on). The Obama campaign quickly challenged the proposal, saying if the health care portion is included in the cap it would lead to a large tax increase on many people.

The Romney campaign assured Wednesday that the heath care portion wouldnt be subject to the cap. Heres why: the health care portion isnt really a tax deduction. Its a tax exclusion.

Its very clear that our tax code has an exclusion for employer-sponsored health care, one campaign staffer said. Thats separate and apart from tax deductions.

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Health Care Not Part of Romney’s $17,000 Tax Plan

NAIROBI, Kenya - Doctors in Kenya's public hospitals on Wednesday spent their 17th day on strike to protest the dilapidated state of public health care.

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Kenya's doctors strike to protest poor state of public health