Healthcare & Policy News
Reporting on health care policy, insurance coverage, and federal health programs. Includes news updates and conservative commentary from The Daily Signal.
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- Opinion
Medicaid Waivers Provide a Pathway for Health Care Reform
Medicaid—the welfare program that provides health care to vulnerable, low-income individuals and families —needs to be reformed, and soon. It’s consuming an ever-larger share of spending at the federal and state level and squeezing out other public policy priorities. At the same time, many of the rules governing Medicaid limit the ability to design and…Nina Owcharenko Schaefer -
- Opinion
North Korea’s Coronavirus Problem
In nighttime photos from space, North Korea looks like a black hole compared to the well-lit South. It’s an apt metaphor for what we know about what’s going inside the DPRK now: Nada. That absence of information poses a real problem when a global health threat is on the loose. And the coronavirus is most…James Carafano -
- Opinion
China’s Coronavirus Response Shows the Weakness of Authoritarianism
Despite China’s incredible economic success as of late, it’s important to remember that it is still fundamentally a communist country. Recent events have been a stern reminder. Freedom can be messy, but it’s nothing like the mess an authoritarian regime creates when it fears losing power. The disturbing outbreak of the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in China…Jarrett Stepman -
- Opinion
Reform the Federal-State Medicaid Partnership to Better Help Those in Need and Save Money
President Donald Trump’s budget includes Medicaid reforms that would restore accountability and improve the federal-state partnership. Predictably, the left is on the attack, contending that these “cuts” would harm the poor and vulnerable. In fact, the president’s proposals would reduce improper federal spending, which now exceeds $75 billion annually, preserve public resources for those most…Brian Blase -
- News
Senate Liberals Try to Make ‘Survivors Protection’ Bill About Access to Abortion
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee pivoted to abortion rights Tuesday during a hearing on legislation to outlaw the denial of medical care to infants who survive abortions. The hearing wasn’t intended to be about the right to an abortion, Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., pointed out no less than four times during the proceedings. “This…Virginia Aabram -
- Opinion
Liberals Refuse to Protect Babies Born After Abortion Attempt
“Can you look me in the eye and tell me that I shouldn’t be alive?” That was the question 14 abortion survivors never got to ask America. Fox Sports, the host of this year’s Super Bowl, refused to air their ad. Maybe it was afraid of creating controversy. Or maybe, it was worried about putting…Tony Perkins -
- News
‘We’re Talking About Babies’: Ben Sasse Says Born-Alive Bill Is Not About Abortion Access
Republican Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse defended a born-alive bill Tuesday and told lawmakers the legislation deals with babies born alive and not abortion access. The senator spoke Tuesday morning at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled “The Infant Patient: Ensuring Appropriate Medical Care for Children Born Alive.” He emphasized the hearing is not about overturning…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- News
On TikTok App, Abortion Becomes Hot Topic
The Chinese-owned social media app TikTok, which temporarily banned a U.S. pro-life organization, is becoming a major conversation hub in the abortion debate. Many young American adults have begun using TikTok as a platform to present political opinions, increasingly on the topic of abortion. Live Action, the organization banned briefly by the app late last…Allison Schuster -
- Opinion
Trump Administration Deserves Praise for Strong Coronavirus Response
A 35-year-old Washington, D.C., man visited an urgent care clinic on Jan. 19, a few days after returning from Wuhan, China. After undergoing testing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined that he had contracted the 2019-nCoV coronavirus—the first such case in the United States. Since surfacing in Wuhan in December, the 2019-nCoV coronavirus…Brayden Helwig -
- Opinion
One Woman’s Fight to Ensure No One Has an Abortion Because of Finances
Emily Berning, co-founder and president of Let Them Live, shares on “Problematic Women” that she saw a gap in the pro-life movement. “Crisis pregnancy centers are amazing. They do so much work and save so many lives, but a lot of them don’t have the funding to pay for rent for women that come in…Lauren Evans -
- Opinion
Coronavirus and China: Beijing’s Behavior Confirms How Bad the Brand Truly Is
Long before the coronavirus made international headlines, China’s Communist Party, which rules the country with unchallenged authority, had an image problem. Image has always been a key element of Beijing’s plan to rise to global greatness. It has worked assiduously to carve a reputation as an unstoppable power wading well into the midst of world affairs. Today, however, that carefully…James Carafano -
- Opinion
Watch the Abortion Survivors Ad Too Powerful for the Super Bowl
Pro-life group Faces of Choice recently created a powerful ad that seeks to show “the many faces of survivors of abortion, to put a face to the ‘choice’ of ending life.” It spent considerable time and money hoping that the ad would air on Super Bowl Sunday. However, according to Faces of Choice Executive Director Lyric Gillett, when they…Patrina Mosley -
- Opinion
From the Chinese Coronavirus Crisis, 3 Early Lessons
The United Nations’ World Health Organization on Jan. 9 announced an outbreak of a new—or novel—coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in Wuhan, China. In the three weeks since the announcement, the virus has intensified in China, infecting thousands there and is now spreading across the globe, far beyond its origin in Hubei province. Indeed, this new coronavirus has…Peter Brookes -
- Opinion
Trump Administration Takes on California’s Abortion Funding Coercion
President Donald Trump wasn’t the only one making history at this year’s March for Life. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar put an even bigger exclamation point on the day when he broke news at Family Research Council headquarters about new action the agency was taking. After four years of watching California attack its…Tony Perkins -
- Opinion
Problematic Women: Teen Vogue Shouts the Merits of Abortion
Friday is the 47th annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. In honor of this special day, we have an episode dedicated to the pro-life movement. We break down the theme of this year’s march, the story of the original pro-life feminists, and some of the big positive and negative news stories surrounding the abortion…Lauren Evans -
- News
Half of Pro-Choice Americans Favor Restrictions on Abortion, Poll Finds
Nearly half of self-described pro-choice Americans actually support “significant restrictions” on abortion, a new poll finds. Marist Poll’s annual survey on abortion, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, found that 40% of those surveyed identified as pro-life and 55% as pro-choice, with 5% undecided. But when the question was rephrased to ask whether those surveyed…Virginia Aabram -
- News
Patriots’ Benjamin Watson to Produce Documentary on Abortion
New England Patriots tight end Benjamin Watson announced Tuesday that he is producing a documentary on abortion. The pro-life father of seven began filming “Divided Hearts of America” in May, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The movie is budgeted at less than $1 million and is financed by donors and by Watson’s One More Foundation,…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- News
Pregnant Michelle Williams Says She ‘Wouldn’t Have Been Able to Do This’ Without Abortion
Pregnant actress Michelle Williams spoke out Sunday night at the Golden Globes saying she “wouldn’t have been able to do this without employing a woman’s right to choose.” The actress, who has a 14-year-old daughter with the late actor Heath Ledger and is expecting a baby with her fiancé and “Hamilton” director Thomas Kail, gave…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- News
March for Life to Highlight Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act
The March for Life aims to foster a culture where abortion becomes “unthinkable.” To that end, Jeanne Mancini, president of the group that sponsors the annual pro-life march in Washington each January, says it will work to draw the public’s attention to the proposed Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. The legislation stipulates that if a…Jackson Elliott -
- Opinion
‘My Life Was a Miracle’: The Journey of an Abortion Survivor
When she was 21 years old, Claire Culwell found out a huge secret about her past: her biological mom had tried to have an abortion when she was pregnant with Claire and her twin. While Claire’s twin didn’t survive, Claire did—and that revelation changed her life. “I knew that I couldn’t stand for what abortion…Katrina Trinko