Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including a number of reports about how Medicare and other health policy issues are playing important roles on the campaign trail.
: Why It Matters: You鈥檒l Feel It Whether That Health Care law Stays Or Goes
The issue: America鈥檚 health care system is unsustainable. It鈥檚 not one problem, but three combined: high cost, uneven quality and millions uninsured. Major changes will keep coming. Every family will be affected. Where they stand: President Barack Obama鈥檚 health care law will extend coverage to 30 million uninsured and keep the basic design of Medicare and Medicaid the same. It鈥檚 not clear how well his approach will control costs for taxpayers, families and businesses. Mitt Romney would repeal Obama鈥檚 health care overhaul; what parts he鈥檇 replace have yet to be spelled out. Romney would revamp Medicare, nudging future retirees toward private insurance plans, and he would turn Medicaid over to the states (9/17).
: Romney鈥檚 Health Plans Would Affect Seniors鈥 Care, Studies Find
It has been a central campaign promise from Mitt Romney: His Medicare overhaul plan would not touch benefits for anyone older than 55. That may not, however, be the case with the Republican presidential nominee鈥檚 other health-care proposals. A growing body of research suggests that his plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act and cut Medicaid funding would have a direct impact on the health care that seniors receive (Kliff, 9/16).
For more headlines …
: Challenged On Medicare, GOP Loses Ground
Maria Rubin is one of the coveted independent voters in this swing state 鈥 so independent that she will not say whether she is voting for President Obama or Mitt Romney. She does share her age (63) and, more quickly, her opinion on Medicare: 鈥淚鈥檓 not in favor of changing it, or eliminating it鈥 (Calmes, 9/15).
: Romney’s New Focus: Pushing A Five-Point Economic Plan
Romney’s campaign speeches now center on his five-point economic plan that, he says, will create 12 million jobs over the next four years. (The current plan boils down Romney鈥檚 59-point primary season proposal on jobs and the economy). … Champion small business by cutting taxes and regulations, and by overturning Obamacare. “We need small business to grow. … Small businesses have been crushed these past four years.”
(Landsberg,聽 9/15).
: Obama ‘Fear’ Driving Social Conservatives
Fear of a second Obama administration was a centerpiece at [the Value Voters conference] … Conservatives attending the conference said they worried about a range of things during a possible Obama II, from implementation of the president鈥檚 health care law, and a move to what they saw as more 鈥渟ocialist鈥 policies to the end of the very values 鈥 including the protection of life and traditional marriage 鈥 that they came to the summit to support.. … Ryan addressed the summit on Friday and bashed the Obama administration for its proposed ruling earlier this year, ordering Catholic hospitals and schools to deliver birth control as part of his health care reform plan. (Schultheis, 9/16).
: Health-Care Divide Doesn鈥檛 Simplify Senate Race For All Va. Voters
(T)he choice is not a simple one for every Virginian 鈥 nor for the candidates themselves, who have some nuance to their positions. (Republican Senate candidate George) Allen wants to help repeal the law while preserving a couple of its most popular provisions; (Democrat Tim) Kaine wants to hang on to the heart of the legislation but fix certain aspects of it. Because the health-care law is so complex, and because it has not been fully implemented, some voters aren鈥檛 sure whether they want it to stay or go. That鈥檚 true even for those who are immersed in health-care policy in their professional lives (Vozzella, 9/15).
/:聽 Doctors, Others Billing Medicare At Higher Rates
Thousands of doctors and other medical professionals have billed Medicare for increasingly complicated and costly treatments over the past decade, adding $11 billion or more to their fees 鈥 and signaling a possible rise in medical billing abuse, according to an investigation by the Center for Public Integrity. … Similarly, hospitals sharply stepped up the use of the highest codes for emergency room visits while cutting back on the lowest codes. Medical groups say the shift to higher codes reflects the fact that seniors have gotten older and sicker, requiring more complex care (Schulte, Eaton and Donald, 9/15).
: California Tries To Guide The Way On Health Law
Delay and outright resistance to the health care overhaul might be the norm in much of the country, but not here. California 鈥 home to seven million uninsured people, more than any other state 鈥 is at the forefront of preparations for January 2014, when a controversial requirement that most Americans have medical coverage or pay a penalty takes effect. So far, only 13 states and the District of Columbia have told the Obama administration they intend to set up the insurance exchanges that are supposed to provide a marketplace for people to buy health plans. None are being watched as closely as California, whose singular challenges, from the size, diversity and geographic spread of its uninsured population to its vast budget problems, make it stand out. Many feel a successful rollout here could convince other states with high numbers of uninsured residents that the law can be made to work for them (Goodnough, 9/14).
