It is hard to believe that the online marketplaces, or exchanges, under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), better known as ObamaCare, are having their one year anniversary this month. It seems like only yesterday that the federal website, Healthcare.gov, which officially opened on October 1, 2014, crashed almost immediately. Only six people in the entire country were able to utilize the federal exchange on the first day and sign up for a plan.
A Promising Proposal to Reduce Waste in Medicare
Now that members of Congress have returned from the August recess, they have several big-ticket items to accomplish before the legislative year comes to an end in December. One non-controversial item that could be taken up is the Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act, which aims to reduce waste and fraud in Medicare.
The Medical Device Tax: A Vise On Innovation
Since the day of its passage in 2010, millions of Americans and hundreds of members of Congress have called for the repeal of the Patient Protect and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), more commonly referred to as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or Obamacare. The House of Representatives has had 54 votes on bills that would have fully repealed, restructured broadly, or modified parts of Obamacare. Many of these bills received bi-partisan support; most have died in the Senate. One bill that is likely to pass in the Senate if it could get a vote would fully repeal the ACA’s 2.3 percent excise tax on medical device sales.
Control, Alt, Delete
Control, Alt, Delete seems to be the standard M.O. for the Obama Administration when they want to extricate themselves from politically damaging, and possibly criminal, behavior. Deleting emails, using alias emails, crashing or losing computers seem to be some of their favored tactics.* Most informed citizens are well aware of Lois Lerner’s lost emails due […]
The Name Game
Biologics are, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), medical products “made from a variety of natural sources (human, animal or microorganism). Like drugs, some biologics are intended to treat diseases and medical conditions. Other biologics are used to prevent or diagnose diseases.” Top-selling biologics include Humira® (adalimumab) and Remicade® (infliximab), which are both used for treating rheumatoid arthritis, and Rituxan® (rituximab), which is used to treat non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. These remarkable drugs represent the future of drug research and development.
Bureaucratic Quagmire…Leads to Billions Wasted
A July 9, 2014 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report revealed that in fiscal year (FY) 2013 federal agencies issued an estimated $105.8 billion in improper payments. The GAO report serves as an alarming example of bureaucratic waste. The puzzling mismanagement of funds encompassed 84 government programs spread across 18 agencies.
What a Week!
Last week, important but opposing court opinions were released within hours of each other on two similar cases involving the Affordable Care Act (ACA), often referred to as Obamacare. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit released the opinion on Halbig v. Burwell, formally Halbig v. Sebelius, while the U.S. Court of Appeals […]
Gallup: “Uninsured Rate Sinks to 13.4%…Significant Decline in Uninsured Rate!” Really Gallup? Really?
Gallup released a poll yesterday with the blaring headline, “In U.S., Uninsured Rate Sinks to 13.4% in Second Quarter; Significant Decline in Uninsured Rate Across Age Groups Since the End of 2013.” But before the Obama administration and those that support Obamacare take credit for this supposed sharp decrease in the uninsured, one needs to […]
Here We Go…AGAIN!
President Obama has told the Congress and the country that he will be using his pen and phone to get his priorities implemented. That has meant bypassing Congress and changing, or ignoring, current law. It is well known that this has occurred several times during the horrendous rollout of the Affordable Care Act (ACA / […]
Is Another Special Exemption from Obamacare on the Way?
Last week on June 18, Inside Health Policy reported that lobbying efforts were underway by organizations that represent Medicaid-dependent providers, such as home care services, establishments that care for the disabled, hospice care facilities, etc., to get a special carve-out from the employer health insurance mandate found in the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare.) Under the […]