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First Edition: March 30, 2010

Today's news pages are full of stories detailing more particulars of the new health care bill to be signed into law today by President Obama. Meanwhile, the headlines also indicate that for Democrats, politically capitalizing on the new measure will be no easy task.

30 Mar 2010

NHS Primary Care Trust Managers inefficient, says Commons Health Committee report

Managers of NHS primary care trusts (PCTs) who are in charge of 80% of the annual budget have drawn flak recently from the MPs. Figures revealed last week that the number of health managers have risen by 80% in the last decade.

30 Mar 2010

Obama's calm demeanor, Pelosi's firm stand helped push health care law

President Barack Obama and Democrats missed repeated deadlines, fought back cries of 'death panels' and watched healthcare reform nearly die more than dozen times. Through it all, Obama was the steady captain of the ship, his top aides say, a role the president has played since the early days of the 2008 presidential campaign.

30 Mar 2010

How the health legislation will affect consumers

The Los Angeles Times explores some key questions: Will insurers continue to raise premiums; when will the Medicare "doughnut hole" close; and, "how do I sign up for my new insurance?" In answer to the last one, the Times writes, "Although there are some provisions that take effect this year, such as bans on lifetime limits and the denial of coverage to children with pre-existing conditions, the part of the bill that provides new insurance options does not take effect until 2014" (Geiger, 3/28).

30 Mar 2010

Shinseki tries to squelch rumors about health reform and Vets

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Erik Shinseki "addressed fears that some veterans have expressed that their health care and, specifically, their TRICARE medical coverage will be adversely affected by the health-reform legislation," according to the Providence Journal.

30 Mar 2010

Democrats reflect on importance of reconciliation in health bill strategy

Reconciliation proved critical to health care reform passage, The New York Times reports: "Just a few months into his first term in 1993, President Bill Clinton went to Senator Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia, the protector of Senate rules, to ask permission to use a fast-track budget process known as reconciliation to enact a bold health care overhaul.' At that time, Clinton got neither consent nor the passage of a health care law.

30 Mar 2010

Industry groups, lobbying firms gain from health overhaul

The Associated Press: Under the new health care law, "pharmaceutical lobbyists won new federal policies they coveted and set a trajectory for long-term industry growth." Ramsey Baghdadi, a Washington health policy analyst, "projects a $30 billion, 10-year net gain for the industry. 'I don't see how they could have done much better,'" he said.

29 Mar 2010

Closing Medicare drug gap helps Democrats sell reform

Kaiser Health News writer Christopher Weaver, in a story produced in collaboration with the Los Angeles Times, looks at the government's plan to close the Medicare prescription drug "doughnut hole."

29 Mar 2010

Health reform will create demand for primary care physicians, rural docs especially squeezed

The Associated Press: "Primary care physicians already are in short supply in parts of the country, and the landmark health overhaul that will bring them millions more newly insured patients in the next few years promises extra strain. ... Recently published reports predict a shortfall of roughly 40,000 primary care doctors over the next decade, a field losing out to the better pay, better hours and higher profile of many other specialties.

29 Mar 2010

First Edition: March 29, 2010

Today's headlines showcase reports about the newly enacted health overhaul law and about the political climate facing lawmakers in the post-vote environment.

29 Mar 2010

Health On The Hill: The reform bill is signed, what's next?

Kaiser Health News' Mary Agnes Carey discusses what's next for health reform in Health On The Hill.

29 Mar 2010

Healthcare reforms – How much more is necessary?

A lot of media attention has been focussed on Australian healthcare reforms lately. Although parallels are being drawn between the American health care policy and its counterpart in Australia, the latter fails to satisfy the public as the former even tries to.

29 Mar 2010

Brumby asks government to rethink $50 billion hospitals plan

Victoria Premier John Brumby's letter to Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd asks the federal government to rethink its $50 billion hospitals plan. Besides asking about the commonwealth’s vision for the primary and aged care, Brumby also wanted to know how the proposed reforms would help to put the commonwealth-state blame game to an end.

28 Mar 2010

Illinois becomes the 40th state to introduce ALEC's Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act

Yesterday, Illinois became the 40th state where legislators have introduced, or will introduce, legislation modeled after the American Legislative Exchange Council's (ALEC) Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act. Illinois House Bill 6842 prohibits a requirement to purchase health insurance and would provide the state with protection in a constitutional challenge of the federal health reform bill.

27 Mar 2010

Federal agencies' complicated task: Implementing health reform provisions

NPR: "The health care bill President Barack Obama signed this week is more than 2,400 pages long. Still, it doesn't contain many of the details about how it will work and how it will be enforced. The responsibility for explaining the bill falls to workers in the trenches at government agencies. Some of the nitty-gritty details that are missing include defining many of the terms used in the measure, and spelling out exactly how individuals would prove they have health insurance."

27 Mar 2010

Oral Health America announces support for dental care benefits in health care reform bill

The health care reform bill passed by Congress, and now signed into law by President Obama, includes many provisions that will improve the nation's oral health. Most significantly, the bill does guarantee oral health coverage for children and allows for resources to extend oral disease prevention measures in every state. Over time, the bill's provisions can help to increase access to care for all ages.

27 Mar 2010

Republicans prepare political health reform attack on defiant Obama

President Barack Obama told Republicans seeking a repeal of the health overhaul law to "go for it" Thursday as Republicans vowed to keep up their attacks through the November elections and beyond.

27 Mar 2010

High demand for Saturday's free health clinic near Atlanta

Demand from uninsured Georgia residents medical for services at Saturday's large, one-day free health clinic near Atlanta is so great that organizers will have to put a freeze on registrations unless more doctors volunteer their services.

27 Mar 2010

It's over: Congress completes work on health overhaul with approval of 'fixes'

After more than a year of political wrangling, Congress finished its work on health care reform Thursday night when the House passed a Senate-changed bill of fixes to the new law.

27 Mar 2010

CHF applauds Congress and the President for introducing universal health care coverage

Children's Health Fund strongly supports the reconciliation bill signed by President Barack Obama implementing positive changes and fixes to the health reform bill he signed earlier this week. This second piece of health reform legislation marks an unprecedented effort to make real and positive change for the health and well-being of children in this country.

27 Mar 2010