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With 258 House and 57 Senate Democrats, it’s almost certain that major health
reform will be passed, right?
Actually, that was the number of Democrats Bill Clinton started off with in 1993 and we know what happened to health care reform in that Congress.
With similar Democratic majorities, I do not expect a major health care reform bill like the one President-Elect Barack Obama called for during the campaign–in 2009 or 2010.
When Obama takes office in January, the economy will be his first
priority, followed by the war in Iraq. Health care will follow as his
next major issue to address. What will he do? I imagine
he’ll take a phased approach to ensuring all Americans have access to
health care. Given the change management needed to accomplish this, it
will take a while. FULL POST
A year ago, health care held a solid lead in the polls as the number
one concern of the American people. But by the time the Iowa caucuses
closed, and Barack Obama surged to his unexpected win, it had been
supplanted by the economy … FULL POST
In the recent past, some progressives have warned that liberals made
a mistake when they reached out to minorities, new immigrants, and
gays, "ignoring" the mainstream middle class. But in fact,
"mainstream" America is no longer one recognizable culture. FULL POST
On THCB today Maggie Mahar basically tells the health reform crowd to be patient. But two members of the unreconstructed left in other venues don’t agree. In the NY Times Paul Krugman says that deficit spending is OK, and correctly points out that Obama has a real mandate to fix the underlying problems of middle America — and yes, that would include health care. FULL POST
Sermo has very quickly become the big Kahuna in the physician social
network space. So big in fact that its rivals trumpet how different
they are from it in their models and approach. VIDEO
In a letter of congratulations,
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus told Obama he’s already
got health reform on his radar.
THCB regular Michael Millenson doesn’t understand Baucus’ strategy.
Here’s Millenson’s two theories on what this could mean:
Scenario No. 1: The Republicans in Congress, chastened by their election losses, join in a lame-duck effort with Democrats who, in the a spirit of forgiveness and comity, help pass a bipartisan health care reform plan before Christmas. President Bush, fresh from long weeks of prayer and repentance, signs the bill on the morning of January 20 with President-elect Obama looking on. Bush hands him a pen, and then they step out onto the Capitol Rotunda for the swearing-in.Alternative scenario: Baucus holds a press conference and Obama aides wonder silently why a *!# Democratic senator is upstaging a guy from his own party who just won a resounding and historic victory with health care at the very center of it. Republicans, meanwhile, encourage Kennedy to introduce his own plan, and maybe Bernie Sanders wants to try his hand at a real socialist version and, by gosh, it sure is great to see the Democrats being Democrats.
By Robert Laszewski
President-Elect Obama, and about every candidate for Congress, has said he wants to change the partisan tone in Washington. Obama, the Democratic Congressional leadership, and the Republicans have a terrific opportunity to do just that on health care when they all come to Washington early next year.
As I posted earlier, I do not believe there is any chance we can see the enactment of the comprehensive Obama health plan in the near term.
But there are a number of important steps that can be taken next year and each of them have enjoyed strong bipartisan support during the past year:
By 
We know the name of the 44th President of the United States: Barack Obama. As the next President’s supporter Oprah Winfrey is known to ask, "What do you know for sure?" When it comes to health, there are a few things we know about a President Obama.
First and foremost, addressing challenges in U.S. health care will require a multi-pronged strategy which brings stakeholders together. The key health-aches to address will be:
This is not a one-man job, and Senator Obama knows that. He has surrounded himself with a cadre of experts who understand these Big Hairy Health Issues and are on the forefront of solutions. He has, thus far, made smart choices in his campaign staff and advisers. This is the concept known as "judgement."
By CHARLIE BAKERI’m pretty sure that most public policy types believe they are doing
the right kinds of things to encourage a greener and more resource
sustainable economy. And in many cases, I’m sure that translates into
a set of initiatives, laws and regulations that put the arm on private
sector organizations to do “better.” I was thinking about this
yesterday as I was looking at the massive, paper, perfect
bound provider directories Harvard Pilgrim is required by MA state law
to produce.
I then started to think about all the paper we are required to
produce under various state and federal statutes and regulations, and
all the mailings and letters we are required to send out to various
constituents – providers, employers, members – under other state and
federal statutes. I took a picture a couple of years ago of the amount
of paperwork – it covered a monstrous board room-like table in a very
large conference room – that the state of Massachusetts required us to
file to maintain our license to sell insurance in Massachusetts. I
remember thinking then, “what a waste.”
“Social media is changing the way that consumers gather health
information from the Internet. Patients and caregivers are no longer
limited to static resources but are now sharing advice and treatment
experiences online,” explained Meredith Abreu Ressi, Manhattan Research Vice
President of Research, “And it’s not just younger audiences connecting
online – consumers with conditions such as cancer, fibromyalgia, and
depression are also avid users of these types of resources. Health 2.0
is happening, and it’s changing the way things are done in the
healthcare industry.”
Manhattan Research estimates that 60 million U.S. adults are Health 2.0 consumers, using "blogs, online support groups, prescription rating sites and other health-related social media applications." The company’s Cybercitizen 0.8 report came out this week in the aftermath of the Health 2.0 in San Francisco. Ressi shares her reaction to the conference and talks about trends in online advertising and consumer behavior in the Web 2.0 era in a Manhattan Research podcast. PODCAST
Note: This post first appeared at Goozner’s blog, Gooznews.
A year ago, health care held a solid lead in the polls as the number
one concern of the American people. But by the time the Iowa caucuses
closed, and Barack Obama surged to his unexpected win, it had been
supplanted by the economy, a changing reality I noted in this New Year’s Day post.
As my daughter and I stood in a crowd of well over 100,000 people
last night in Manassas, Virginia, and heard the Democratic nominee give
his stump speech for the last time, I was struck by how little of it
was devoted to any issue beyond the core economy. His mom’s struggle
with paying her bills as she lay dying of cancer and the need to put
health into our sick care system got a line; but so did the war in Iraq
and going after bin Laden. As in 1992 when the last Democrat got
elected for the first time, it’s the economy, stupid.
But unlike some pundits who say the health care issue will be put on
the backburner for the first half of the next president first term, I
do not believe the nation will have that luxury. Curbing the growth of
health care spending will reassert itself as an issue next year because
it is key to restoring this nation to economic competitiveness.
American businesses are at a competitive disadvantage when they must
pay twice what companies in other countries pay (whether premiums or
taxes) to provide their workers health coverage.
The morning after reality for the next president is that the U.S.
spends more on health care than any other nation on earth — 16 percent
of gross domestic product and rising. Yet nearly 50 million Americans
go without health coverage during the year, and in traditional markers
of national well-being — longevity and infant mortality — the U.S.
ranks below many former Communist bloc nations of Eastern Europe.
By THCB Staff
Now that the results are in and the United States has officially elected Barack Obama as its next president, what does that mean to you and what will that mean for health care in America?
After nearly two years of campaigns, countless pages of material written about Obama’s health care plan and the possibility of reform, the U.S. has elected a Democrat as president and put Democratic majorities in both the House and Senate.
What do you predict the next four years will bring?
This is your space to reflect, comment and debate. Please share your thoughts, and let’s get a vigorous discussion going.
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