"This was the voice of moderation until 13 Sept, 2025"
By Lindsay Beyerstein Nancy Pelosi is going all in to support a public option that would hold down costs by setting reimbursement rates at Medicare plus 5%. The CBO's latest cost estimates for various House health care reform options have galvanized Pelosi in favor of a Med+5 public option, Brian Beutler reports. Pelosi has always … Read more
…. Of calling the Democrats' stimulus package A Stimulus for Tomorrow (Part 11) by von Andrew Sullivan mentions a piece by Daniel Gross, which purportedly reminds "conservatives"* that it's too early to label the stimulus a failure because most of the money hasn't been spent yet. Here is my hand. Here is my forehead. Here is my … Read more
(Also known as: A Stimulus for Tomorrow, Part 10) by von Everyone should have seen this coming …. well, everyone who reads these here Wings of Obsidian. From Salon (citing Bloomberg and The New York Times): Call it the the stimulus that dare not be named. Bloomberg reports that the Obama administration is considering "a mix of spending … Read more
by von Senator Wyden (D-Ore.) has a health care bill. As I've written in the past, it's a pretty damn good bill. I'm not alone in liking it: lots of other folks on the left and right do as well. Moreover, unlike all the other major health care bills out there, Wyden's bill is genuinely bipartisan: it … Read more
by hilzoy Here's an interesting catch by Merrill Goozner: "The House bill would create an internet accessible database that includes all health-related payments to physicians by corporations including gifts, food, or entertainment; travel or trips; honoraria; research funding or grants; education or conference funding; consulting fees; ownership or investment interests; and royalties or license fees. … Read more
by hilzoy Good news from the NYT: "The Obama administration announced Monday that it would seek to ban many routine uses of antibiotics in farm animals in hopes of reducing the spread of dangerous bacteria in humans. In written testimony to the House Rules Committee, Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, principal deputy commissioner of food and drugs, … Read more
by hilzoy Megan McArdle responds to my last post: "Surely the point of worry is that many millions of people will be forced into the public system, because its existence will encourage their employers to dump their health care plans. Since private systems have so far found it virtually impossible to deny many treatments for … Read more
by publius One of the most common critiques against the public option is that government subsidies will give it an unfair market advantage. Frankly, "fairness" isn't high on my list of priorities. But regardless, the cry for a "level playing field" is admittedly a politically powerful counterargument that needs to be addressed. So here's the … Read more
by hilzoy Remember how cap and trade was supposed to "cost every family as much as $3,100 a year in additional energy costs"? Surprise, surprise: "CBO estimates that the net annual economywide cost of the cap-and-trade program in 2020 would be $22 billion—or about $175 per household. That figure includes the cost of restructuring the … Read more
by hilzoy This is one of those dull bills that really matters: "The nation's complex food supply chain would become more transparent, inspections of food facilities would become more frequent and manufacturers would be required to take steps aimed at preventing food-borne illnesses under legislation proposed yesterday by key House leaders who have pledged to … Read more