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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- News
22 of 23 Taxpayer-Backed Obamacare Co-Ops Lost Money In 2014, Audit Finds
A new report from a government watchdog examining the success of taxpayer-funded Obamacare co-ops found that the vast majority lost money last year and struggled to enroll consumers, throwing their ability to repay the taxpayer-funded loans into question. According to the audit from the Department of Health and Human Services’ inspector general, 22 of the…Melissa Quinn -
- Opinion
Medicare and Medicaid – 50 Years Later – It’s Time for Change
Fifty years ago, on July 30, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed legislation creating the nation’s two largest federal health entitlements, Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare was created as a social insurance program for seniors and those with disabilities. It is financed primarily by payroll taxes collected during a recipient’s working life, and secondarily by personal…Robert Moffit -
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The Path to Repeal Obamacare With Just 51 Votes
After vowing to repeal and replace Obamacare during the 2014 midterm elections, Republicans officially took control of Congress in January. Republicans have several procedural tools at their disposal to roll back Obamacare. Many have called on leadership to use a budget tool known as reconciliation to do just that. Reconciliation gives the GOP the power…Melissa Quinn -
- News
Mike Lee Secured a Commitment From GOP Leadership to Repeal Obamacare With a Simple Majority. Here’s How.
Conservative Sen. Mike Lee struck a deal Monday with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to repeal Obamacare through a budget tool known as reconciliation, which would allow the Senate to roll back the health care law with a simple majority (51 votes). The Utah Republican secured the commitment from McConnell in exchange for the…Melissa Quinn -
- News
The Taxpayer-Funded Louisiana Co-Op Created Under Obamacare Has Collapsed
Just two years after Obamacare’s implementation, a Louisiana nonprofit insurer that received nearly $66 million in taxpayer-funded loans is closing its doors. On Friday, the Louisiana Department of Insurance announced that the state’s consumer operated and oriented plan, or co-op, would be discontinuing its operations at the end of 2015. Louisiana’s is the second co-op…Melissa Quinn -
- News
Senate to Vote on Obamacare Repeal, Export-Import Bank Revival
The Senate on Sunday will stay overtime to consider two controversial amendments to a highway funding bill, voting on measures to repeal Obamacare and revive the Export-Import Bank. On Friday morning, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced he would allow the two amendments to proceed as attachments to a “must-pass” bill to address the…Alex Anderson -
- News
In Her Own Words: Planned Parenthood’s Top Abortion Doctor Keeps Low Profile Online
The top Planned Parenthood doctor whose face is all over the Internet because of an undercover video otherwise has left little mark on social media or elsewhere on the Web. More than one congressional committee wants to hear from Dr. Deborah L. Nucatola, among others, but a lawyer for Planned Parenthood Federation of America says…Ken McIntyre -
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Senator Fights Back Tears in Emotional Speech About Planned Parenthood’s Abortion Methods
Sen. James Lankford was on the verge of tears Thursday as he addressed his colleagues about Planned Parenthood’s controversial abortion methods exposed in an undercover video. “It seems the ultimate irony to me that we spend time talking about humane treatment of animals being put down, like in horse slaughter, and we completely miss children…Diana Stancy -
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Alaska Governor Expanding Medicaid Despite Objections From Legislature
Alaska’s governor said Thursday he was using his executive authority to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act after failing to get the state legislature to sign off on providing the coverage. Independent Gov. Bill Walker’s announcement seats Alaska as the 30th state to expand Medicaid coverage. The independent governor said his state could not…Natalie Johnson -
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Court Rules Nuns Caring for the Poor Must Comply With Obamacare Contraception Mandate
In what could be the next Obamacare case to go before the Supreme Court, an appeals court ruled today the Little Sisters of the Poor must comply with the health care law’s contraception mandate and allow employees to have access to coverage of contraception and abortion-inducing drugs. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th…Melissa Quinn -
- News
As Senate Stalls, House Conservatives Push for Repeal of Obamacare Through Reconciliation
As Senate Republicans continue to discuss using reconciliation to roll back provisions of Obamacare, House Conservatives are encouraging their colleagues to follow through on their campaign promises and move forward with repealing the health care law. Republicans passed a budget resolution in May that included broad reconciliation instructions, which many members believed would be used…Melissa Quinn -
- News
Obama’s Nominee to Head Medicare, Medicaid Agency Faces Questions of Cronyism
An Obama administration official who faces questions surrounding potential conflicts of interest due to his work in the medical services field has been nominated to serve as head of the agency tasked with overseeing Obamacare. The White House announced yesterday Andy Slavitt’s nomination to permanently head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Slavitt began…Melissa Quinn -
- News
Iowa Doctors Can Now Administer Abortion Pills Through Webcam
It is now legal for physicians in Iowa to administer abortion-inducing pills by webcam. Last month, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled a ban on using webcam communication to administer abortion-inducing pills was unconstitutional. This telemedicine abortion procedure, used only at Planned Parenthood clinics in Iowa and Minnesota, is banned in 18 other states for safety…Leah Jessen -
- Opinion
How ‘Robert Bork’s America’ Gave Us Justice Kennedy’s America
It would go down in history as Sen. Edward Kennedy’s “Robert Bork’s America” speech. Judge Bork, a brilliant constitutional scholar, had been nominated by President Reagan to the U.S. Supreme Court, and Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat who chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee, was having none of it. Just minutes after Bork was nominated in July…Betsy Hart -
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Florida Law Instituting a 24-Hour Waiting Period for Abortion Goes Into Effect
After being temporarily delayed by a judge, a Florida law that institutes a mandatory 24-hour waiting period before undergoing an abortion went into effect on Wednesday. House Bill 633 was signed into law last month. The legislation requires an abortion provider to meet with a woman seeking an abortion for a consultation appointment at least 24…Kate Scanlon -
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What You Didn’t Know About a Doctor’s Stance on the HPV Vaccine
It appears to be a neutral source in a prestigious medical journal: An article defending the controversial human papillomavirus (HPV) cervical cancer vaccine. It criticizes the Japanese government’s decision to stop promoting the vaccine amid concerns about injuries. And it implies patients are incorrectly blaming the HPV vaccine for unrelated ills. Critics say it’s an…Sharyl Attkisson -
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Drones Provide Abortion-Inducing Pills to Polish Women
Last Saturday, abortion-inducing medication flew from Germany to Poland on the world’s first abortion drone in order to help women gain “access to safe abortions” in Poland, where strict abortion restrictions exist. The campaign was launched by several reproductive rights groups, including Women on Waves, an abortion support group for Polish women, along with several…Diana Stancy -
- Opinion
What the Supreme Court Got Wrong on Obamacare and Marriage
Two of the Supreme Court’s biggest decisions were handed down last week, prompting praise and criticism. Yesterday, I appeared on Fox News to analyze the court’s rulings on Obamacare and same-sex marriage. >>> For more on this, see Ryan T. Anderson’s new book, “Truth Overruled: The Future of Marriage and Religious Freedom”Ryan T. Anderson -
- Opinion
Obama’s Conservative Defense of Obamacare
Yesterday was a great day for conservative rhetoric in America. After the Supreme Court upheld a key provision of Obamacare by rewriting the law (again), President Obama urged Americans to be deferential to the wisdom of long-established traditions and customs. “What we’re not going to do is unravel what has now been woven into the…David Azerrad -
- Opinion
Cartoon: Obamacare’s Long-Term Prognosis
The U.S. Supreme Court sided with the Obama administration Thursday in a 6-3 ruling that upholds the federal subsidies awarded under Obamacare. That led President Obama to boast that “The Affordable Care Act is here to stay.” But what's the long-term prognosis? Heritage Foundation President Jim DeMint had this to say after the court's ruling:…Glenn Foden