1. Health Care

Category Archives: Health Care

Has the Health Care Ruling Upped the Ante for Election Contenders?

Posted on by

JUDY WOODRUFF: Now to American politics.

Ray Suarez has two different takes on what yesterday's Supreme Court ruling on health care policy will mean in the presidential contest.

RAY SUAREZ: Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley is chairman of the Democratic Governors Association and a top surrogate for the president.

Governor, welcome.

Yesterday, during his address following the release of the decision, the president kidded about the political value of the Affordable Care Act, almost implying there wasn't much. But looking at it now, is this a win politically for the president?

GOV. MARTIN O'MALLEY, D-Md.: Well, I think, ultimately, it will be.

What we have to do a better job of as a party is explaining the benefits and the rationale here. I mean, not only do we need to stop wasting money on a broken health care system, but we need to improve wellness and bring down costs, so that we can grow our economy, so that we can create jobs, and so that we can expand opportunity.

And that's the golden opportunity now that we have to better explain this important step in America's journey.

RAY SUAREZ: Well, in advance of that explanation, the public opinion research implies that the law is still pretty unpopular, even though the public says it likes parts of the overall legislation.

How is that an asset going forward to November?

View original post here:

Has the Health Care Ruling Upped the Ante for Election Contenders?

Health care ruling strengthens GOP ability, resolve to repeal mandate

Posted on by

The U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding the federal health care law was a victory for President Obama, but it also could put a repeal of the individual mandate within reach of Republicans if they can win both the White House and a simple Senate majority.

A repeal of the entire law Obamas major policy initiative is all but a mathematical impossibility. To do away with the law, Republicans would have to win the presidential election, maintain their majority in the House and nail down a super majority capable of withstanding a filibuster in the Senate.

But because the mandate requiring nearly all Americans to buy health insurance was found constitutional based on its falling within Congress taxing authority, this part of the law could be repealed through an arcane process known as budget reconciliation, the same process used to pass the Affordable Care Act two years ago, a former parliamentarian of the U.S. Senate says.

And the budget reconciliation process requires only 51 votes to make changes, so long as one is reducing and not adding tax revenues to the budget.

That makes Chief Justice John Roberts majority opinion about as important to U.S. Senate races this year as it is to the presidential election, and perhaps nowhere more so than in Floridas match-up between incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, a Democrat, and U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, who is expected to win the Republican primary.

The latest Quinnipiac University poll, released this week before the Supreme Courts decision, showed Mack and Nelson in a dead heat.

It takes 60 votes to overcome the threat of a filibuster in the Senate. Democrats hold 51 seats, a four-seat edge over Republicans. Two independents Sens. Joe Lieberman and Bernie Sanders - nearly always vote with the Democrats.

Democrats, including Nelson, hold 21 of the 33 seats up for re-election in November, and six seats five now held by Democrats are open.

This is one of those situations where the stars are arranged in the right way for the Republicans. The magic number of four looks very doable, Lynn University political science professor Robert Watson said.

Robert Dove, who served as the Senates parliamentarian through 2001, said, Theres no question that if (the mandate) is indeed a tax, you can repeal taxes using reconciliation.

Read the original:

Health care ruling strengthens GOP ability, resolve to repeal mandate

South Bay meets health care ruling with relief, outrage

Posted on by

Physician's assistant Denise Donahue with a patient at the Harbor Care Clinic in San Pedro. Photo by Brad Graverson 6-28-12 (Brad Graverson / Staff Photographer)

Tammy Sikora has sought treatment for bone problems in her neck, head and back for nearly 20 years, but only recently began to get proper medical care.

She's been turned down because she doesn't have health insurance, she said, and relies on disability payments to cover trips to physical therapy sessions and pain clinics at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center near Torrance.

"No one would give me the care I needed because I've been uninsured," said Sikora, who is 47 and unemployed. "Had I gotten the care I needed in the past, I wouldn't have the problems I have today. ... My problems are not catching a cold or getting the flu. My problems are in my bones, and much more serious."

The Long Beach woman was among those on Thursday applauding the Supreme Court's ruling largely upholding President Barack Obama's health care overhaul law - a decision that drew varied reactions from residents, politicians, health professionals and others across the South Bay.

The court's 5-4 decision leaves intact the controversial requirement that nearly every American have health insurance, and allows the law to move forward with the goal of getting millions more insured.

"It's a good thing," said 30-year-old Jerry Hernandez, who works at a discount department store in San Pedro and is the only uninsured member of his family. "Most people have health insurance through their jobs. I don't. Everybody should have health insurance."

But even some

"It's kind of confusing to me so, when things are confusing, I just ignore it," said Jennifer Hanson, who on Thursday was visiting San Pedro's Harbor Community Clinic. "If I was able to pay for the cost of health insurance on a sliding scale, for $5 to $10 a month, of course I would."

Tamra King, the clinic's executive director, said she doesn't know whether the law will drive more patients to the already busy Sixth Street facility, which is in the midst of an expansion.

Continued here:

South Bay meets health care ruling with relief, outrage

Snowe: Health care law a ‘bloated monstrosity’

Posted on by

June 30 The senator renews her call for a financial analysis of the Affordable Care Act in light of upcoming budget work.

By Kevin Miller kmiller@mainetoday.com Washington bureau chief

Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe on Friday renewed her call for a detailed analysis of the economic impacts of the Affordable Care Act and lamented the congressional partisanship that marked its creation.

Sen. Olympia Snowe

She made the comments during an interview the day after the U.S. Supreme Court issued its controversial ruling to uphold most of President Obamas signature health care reform law.

In the fall of 2009, Snowe was at the center of the political storm over how to reform the nations health care system.

The sole Republican still involved in the Senate Finance Committees attempts to craft a viable bill, Snowe spent countless hours working with Democrats and met repeatedly with President Obama.

All of which means that pretty much anything Snowe wants, she is going to get and any bill that emerges from this excruciating process will bear her stamp, Time magazine wrote in September 2009.

Of course, things didnt exactly play out that way.

Snowe would later join all of her Republican colleagues to vote against the Affordable Care Act in the full Senate. And on Thursday, she was among many GOP lawmakers who called for its repeal following the Supreme Courts divided decision that upheld most of the law.

Original post:

Snowe: Health care law a ‘bloated monstrosity’

Health care law survives, with Roberts' help

Posted on by

Health Care Reform

June 28, 2012

By MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) In a momentous ruling touching virtually every American, the Supreme Court narrowly upheld President Barack Obama's historic health care overhaul Thursday with the unlikely help of conservative Chief Justice John Roberts.

But the decision also gave Republicans unexpected ammunition to energize supporters in the battle for the White House and to fight "Obamacare" as a new tax on people who don't obtain health insurance.

Roberts' vote, along with those of the court's four liberal justices, preserved the largest expansion of the nation's social safety net in more than 45 years, including the hotly debated core requirement that nearly everyone have health insurance or pay a penalty. The aim is to extend coverage to more than 30 million people who now are uninsured

The 5-4 decision meant the huge overhaul, still taking effect, could proceed and pick up momentum over the next several years, with an impact on the way that countless Americans receive and pay for their personal medical care.

The ruling handed Obama a campaign-season victory in rejecting arguments that Congress went too far in approving the plan. However, Republicans quickly indicated they would try to use the decision against him.

At the White House, Obama declared, "Whatever the politics, today's decision was a victory for people all over this country." Blocks away, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney renewed his criticism of the overhaul, calling it "bad law" and promising to work to repeal it if elected in November.

Demonstrators for and against the law crowded the grounds outside the Supreme Court Building on Capitol Hill as Roberts, sitting at the center of the nine black-robed justices inside, announced the decision to a packed courtroom.

Read the rest here:

Health care law survives, with Roberts' help

One supreme court justice could make or break health care act – Video

Posted on by

26-06-2012 20:24 Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy's vote in the health care ruling could prove decisive. Joe Johns reports. Obama to give press conference over health care reform act at 12:15 EST. Watch it LIVE at Health care reform act upheld. Watch the reactions LIVE here: For more CNN videos, check out our YouTube Channel at Or visit our site at

See the article here:

One supreme court justice could make or break health care act - Video

Health Care Ruling: more coverage from the AP

Posted on by

We've collected several reports from the Associated Press on Thursday's critical ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on the Affordable Care Act of 2009. We hope you'll take advantage of this resource, learn about the Act itself, the Supreme Court's ruling on it and the ongoing debate over its implementation.

Meantime, continue watching FOX 8 Thursday evening and monitoring http://FOX8Live.com for the rulings impact here in Louisiana.

View post:

Health Care Ruling: more coverage from the AP

Health-care decision: What happens now?

Posted on by

The Supreme Courts decision to uphold all but one provision in the Affordable Care Act means that for now, at least, one of the most far-reaching overhauls of the nations health-care system will be the law of the land. New rules for insurers that have taken effect will remain in place, while new opportunities to gain health-care coverage will begin in 2014.

Read the full text of the Supreme Court's decision on President Obama's health-care law.

More from PostPolitics

David A. Fahrenthold, N.C. Aizenman and Michelle Boorstein

House Republicans have pledged a repeal vote on July 11.

Amy Gardner

Decision sets the issue up to figure prominently for the remainder of the presidential campaign.

This tool estimates what the three most talked about health care ruling scenarios could mean for your coverage, based on your info.

THE BIG STORY | Keep track of full coverage of the health-care decision and the political fallout.

If I dont have health insurance, what will happen?

Here is the original post:

Health-care decision: What happens now?

Health care law survives in Supreme Court (9th update)

Posted on by

WASHINGTON - In a momentous ruling touching virtually every American, the Supreme Court narrowly upheld President Barack Obama's historic health care overhaul Thursday with the unlikely help of conservative Chief Justice John Roberts.

But the decision also gave Republicans unexpected ammunition to energize supporters in the battle for the White House and to fight "Obamacare" as a new tax on people who don't obtain health insurance.

Roberts' vote, along with those of the court's four liberal justices, preserved the largest expansion of the nation's social safety net in more than 45 years, including the hotly debated core requirement that nearly everyone have health insurance or pay a penalty. The aim is to extend coverage to more than 30 million people who now are uninsured

John Roberts, Supreme Court chief justice (AP file photo)

The 5-4 decision meant the huge overhaul, still taking effect, could proceed and pick up momentum over the next several years, with an impact on the way that countless Americans receive and pay for their personal medical care.

The ruling handed Obama a campaign-season victory in rejecting arguments that Congress went too far in approving the plan. However, Republicans quickly indicated they would try to use the decision against him.

At the White House, Obama declared, "Whatever the politics, today's decision was a victory for people all over this country." Blocks away, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney renewed his criticism of the overhaul, calling it "bad law" and promising to work to repeal it if elected in November.

Demonstrators for and against the law crowded the grounds outside the Supreme Court Building on Capitol Hill as Roberts, sitting at the center of the nine black-robed justices inside, announced the decision to a packed courtroom.

Breaking with the other conservative justices, Roberts read the judgment that allows the law to go forward. He explained at length the court's view of the insurance mandate as a valid exercise of Congress' authority to "lay and collect taxes." The administration estimates that roughly 4 million people will pay the penalty rather than buy insurance.

Congress called the payment a penalty, not a tax, but Roberts said the court would not get hung up on labels. Among other indications it is a tax, Roberts said, "the payment is collected solely by the IRS through the normal means of taxation."

View post:

Health care law survives in Supreme Court (9th update)

Health care, bank stocks lead stock market lower

Posted on by

NEW YORK (AP) When the stock market began tumbling Thursday, many people assumed the selloff had something to do with the Supreme Court ruling to uphold President Barack Obama's health care law. But for a lot of investors, it was the same old concerns about Europe, along with a few new worries.

The market fell sharply in early trading, before the high court's announcement, as investors questioned whether a European Union meeting in Brussels would yield the same results as many meetings before it vague pledges, rather than concrete plans for what to do with struggling countries like Greece and Spain.

Bank stocks also declined, in part because of a report that a trading loss at JPMorgan Chase first estimated at $2 billion could be as much as $9 billion.

U.S. stocks still closed lower for the day, but they bounced back in the last half-hour of trading. The Dow Jones industrial average closed down nearly 25 points, after falling as much as 177.

There were varying explanations for the late comeback, but most seemed to focus on Europe, including rumors that the European Central Bank would cut interest rates and that EU leaders might actually emerge from this week's meetings with a plan. Late Thursday, a top EU official said leaders had agreed to devote $149 billion to "immediate growth measures."

Nicholas Colas, ConvergEx Group chief market strategist, said blaming the health care ruling for the market's losses was "a convenient excuse."

"No doubt that the court's decision was disappointing," he said, "but I really think the indecisiveness of European policy makers at the nth summit on the same topic is the cause of the decline."

Other traders had similarly low expectations.

"The first one thousand summits, I was pretty excited," deadpanned Jeff Sica, president and chief investment officer of SICA Wealth Management in Morristown, N.J.

In the U.S., the Dow Jones industrial average was down about 100 points around 10 a.m., just before the Supreme Court ruled. Then it fell more steeply but recovered most of those losses, ending down 24.75 points at 12,602.26.

View original post here:

Health care, bank stocks lead stock market lower

Health care reform: How it impacts your insurance coverage

Posted on by

The Supreme Court's ruling Thursday to uphold health care reform has widespread implications for both insured and uninsured consumers.

Beginning in 2014, uninsured individuals must buy coverage -- either on their own, through an employer's plan or through a health insurance exchange -- or else pay a tax penalty. Meanwhile, insured consumers will continue to enjoy key mandates of the law, such as free preventive care and coverage of adult dependents up to age 26, but at the expense of higher out-of -pocket costs.

In the United States, more than half of the population -- or 160 million people -- gets health insurance directly through their employers, while 50 million people have no insurance, according to the government. Tens of millions more consumers either buy their own private insurance or are covered by government programs, such as Medicaid and Medicare.

Several key mandates of health reform have already gone into effect since the law passed in 2010. Here's a rundown of those provisions and new mandates rolling out over the next two years that will impact almost all of these consumers.

If you have insurance through your employer: Employees will continue to enjoy key benefits mandated by health reform that have already gone into effect.

"For consumers who are insured through their employers, this is good news," said Mike Thompson, principal with PwC's Global Human Resources Services.

Among the main provisions: Employers must provide coverage for adult dependents of workers up to age 26; health plans must cover certain preventive services, such as mammograms and colonoscopies, without charging a deductible, co-pay or coinsurance; and insurers can't impose a maximum lifetime dollar limit on a customer's medical care.

In 2013, eight additional preventive care services for women, including HIV and HPV (Human Papillomavirus) screening, will be covered under health reform.

Related: Justices say insurance mandate is a tax

But some industry experts also said that employers who offer insurance will now be even more focused on controlling their health care costs, especially since the individual mandate is expected to add more people -- including more high-risk individuals -- to their plans.

See the rest here:

Health care reform: How it impacts your insurance coverage


  1. Health Care