This week’s health policy news roundup curated by Jane Orient, M.D.
Helping Democrats “fix” Obamacare is not a good strategy, writes Onan Coca. To pass a bill the President is willing to sign in order to keep the program from crashing is to concede the battle. IF the program is allowed to crash, then the onus will be on the President to sign a free-market alternative. http://eaglerising.com/18005/republicans-making-big-mistake-trying-fix-obamacare/
But will Republicans keep their promise to end ObamaCare?
After 6 years, the special interests and crony capitalists are well-entrenched. Have they bought the Republicans who might bring the system down? Illegal ObamaCare subsidies for Congressmen and their staffs are effectively a bribe to keep them from re-opening ObamaCare, writes Mchael Cannon. http://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelcannon/2015/04/23/end-the-personal-bribes-members-of-congress-are-getting-not-to-reopen-obamacare/print/
Senate Small Business & Entrepreneurship Committee chairman David Vitter (R-LA) has been waging a lonely battle to end these bribes. After suffering numerous setbacks, Vitter now seeks to shine sunlight on how these bribes happened. He wants to subpoena documents relating to OPM’s claim that Congress is a small business.
Five Republicans joined the committee’s nine Democrats to oppose the subpoena: Mike Enzi (Wyo.), Jim Risch (Idaho), Deb Fischer (Neb.), Rand Paul (Ky.), and Kelly Ayotte (N.H.). http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/239843-five-republicans-vote-to-halt-gop-chairmans-obamacare-investigation
Vitter accuses them of wanting to “protect congressional perks.” http://www.nationaljournal.com/congress/republicans-block-vitter-s-obamacare-subpoena-20150423
And how many Congressmen own stock in the insurers that ObamaCare is benefiting? UnitedHealth Group posted $36 billion in first-quarter revenues.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2015/04/22/health-plans-mastery-of-obamacare-poses-challenge-to-repeal/
The crony capitalists are real masters at playing all sides of the game: http://www.publicintegrity.org/2015/04/20/17192/insurers-backed-obamacare-then-undermined-it-now-theyre-profiting-it
Social Media:
Why @HHSGov should get out of measuring health quality @BilhartzMD
Gov must stop wasting our money on futility. http://t.co/GnIrUrBTsq
— IP4PI (@IP4PI) April 29, 2015
