Our Health Policy Matters

“States’ rights” is as popular a rallying cry as ever as we enter the early stages of the 2012 election campaign.   To advocates of states’ rights, they are code words for state innovation and initiative, unhampered by the demands of a federal government.     In their minds, we are a United States of America.   To skeptics, we are a United States of America, and states’ rights are the code words of political leaders who want to run their states as fiefdoms and answer to no higher authority.   The new 2010 uninsured numbers released by the U.S. Census Bureau last week make a compelling case against the states’ rights position. In the South, where the drum roll for states’ rights beats most loudly, 19% of all people were uninsured 2010 for the entire year .   This was more than in the West, where 18% were uninsured, the Midwest, where 13% were uninsured, and the Northeast, where only 12% were uninsured. Place clearly matters where health insurance i...

“States’ rights” is as popular a rallying cry as ever as we enter the early stages of the 2012 election campaign.   To advocates of states’ rights, they are code words for state innovation and initiative, unhampered by the demands of a federal government.     In their minds, we are a United States of America.   To skeptics, we are a United States of America, and states’ rights are the code words of political leaders who want to run their states as fiefdoms and answer to no higher authority.   The new 2010 uninsured numbers released by the U.S. Census Bureau last week make a compelling case against the states’ rights position. In the South, where the drum roll for states’ rights beats most loudly, 19% of all people were uninsured 2010 for the entire year .   This was more than in the West, where 18% were uninsured, the Midwest, where 13% were uninsured, and the Northeast, where only 12% were uninsured. Place clearly matters where health insurance i...

It was hard to witness the embarrassing spectacle of politicians responding to the credit downgrade by circling their firing squad yet again. I’d like to see some grown-ups emerge from the mess.   But I’m not holding my breath. Sources: CBO, GIH, KFF, CDC, NAPH Our debt problem was caused by tax cuts that didn’t create jobs, wars for which we didn’t pay, and an unsustainable and under-regulated financial bubble that burst .   It wasn’t caused by entitlements. Despite this, politicians are pushing entitlement myths and reforms.   But in the unsteady hands of this unstable Congress, entitlement reform could result in a health and mental health care Armageddon that could blow us all back into the 19 th century – the stone age of modern medicine. The Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds still have surpluses.   They aren’t responsible for the debt.   In fact, Social Security Trust Funds hold U.S. debt, just like China. We can do two things about futur...

It was hard to witness the embarrassing spectacle of politicians responding to the credit downgrade by circling their firing squad yet again. I’d like to see some grown-ups emerge from the mess.   But I’m not holding my breath. Sources: CBO, GIH, KFF, CDC, NAPH Our debt problem was caused by tax cuts that didn’t create jobs, wars for which we didn’t pay, and an unsustainable and under-regulated financial bubble that burst .   It wasn’t caused by entitlements. Despite this, politicians are pushing entitlement myths and reforms.   But in the unsteady hands of this unstable Congress, entitlement reform could result in a health and mental health care Armageddon that could blow us all back into the 19 th century – the stone age of modern medicine. The Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds still have surpluses.   They aren’t responsible for the debt.   In fact, Social Security Trust Funds hold U.S. debt, just like China. We can do two things about fu...