Health care

Another bill Kansas Governor Sam Brownback should veto
07
May
By Bob Weeks

Another bill Kansas Governor Sam Brownback should veto

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback has another opportunity to promote and protect individual liberty by blocking expansion of an ever-growing regulatory state. It took a bit of legislative wrangling, but on Sunday May 1 HB 2615 passed the Kansas Senate by a vote of 40 to zero, and the Kansas House of Representatives by 115 to seven. In its final form, the bill allows physicians and dentists to satisfy a portion of their continuing education requirements by providing charity care to medically indigent persons.[1. "The bill would allow charitable healthcare providers and dentists to fulfill one hour of continuing education credit…
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In Kansas, doctors may “learn” just by doing their jobs
10
Mar
By Bob Weeks

In Kansas, doctors may “learn” just by doing their jobs

A proposed bill in Kansas should make us question the rationale of continuing medical education requirements for physicians. The bill is HB 2615, titled "Charitable healthcare providers; continuing education credits for gratuitous care of eligible patients." The bill's supplemental note explains the bill "... would allow charitable healthcare providers and dentists to fulfill one hour of continuing education credit for performance of two hours of gratuitous service to medically indigent persons." In an op-ed published in the Wichita Eagle Representative Dan Hawkins explained "we believe that this system has the potential of generating more than $18 million in free care…
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Inspector General evaluates Obamacare website
25
Feb
By Bob Weeks

Inspector General evaluates Obamacare website

The HHS Inspector General has released an evaluation of the Obamacare website HealthCare.gov, shedding light on the performance of former Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius. The Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services has released a report titled HealthCare.gov: Case Study of CMS Management of the Federal Marketplace. An excerpt from the executive summary holds the main points: What We Found The development of HealthCare.gov faced a high risk of failure, given the technical complexity required, the fixed deadline, and a high degree of uncertainty about mission, scope, and funding. Still, we found that HHS and…
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22
Jan
By Bob Weeks

Medicaid found to increase, not decrease, emergency room usage

Those who continue to call for the expansion of Medicaid in Kansas should be aware of this astonishing finding, which contrary to what the conventional wisdom has told us about health care. For years, it has been the number one talking point of Obamacare supporters. People who are uninsured end up getting costly care from hospitals’ emergency rooms. “Those of us with health insurance are also paying a hidden and growing tax for those without it -- about $1,000 per year that pays for [the uninsureds’] emergency room and charitable care,” said President Obama in 2009. Obamacare, the President told…
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01
Jun
By Bob Weeks

Krugman on solutions to health care

Following are excerpts from New York Times columns by economist and Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman. You may tweet your reaction to him at @NYTimeskrugman. Well, I know about a health care system that has been highly successful in containing costs, yet provides excellent care. And the story of this system's success provides a helpful corrective to anti-government ideology. For the government doesn't just pay the bills in this system -- it runs the hospitals and clinics. No, I'm not talking about some faraway country. The system in question is our very own Veterans Health Administration, whose success story is one…
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04
Feb
By Bob Weeks

Medicaid expansion: The impact on the federal budget and deficit

From Kansas Policy Institute. Medicaid Expansion: The Impact on the Federal Budget and Deficit By Steve Anderson The problem with the uninsured is not going to be solved by expanding Medicaid. Even amongst Medicaid’s staunchest proponents you’ll be hard pressed to find any who will claim it to be the equivalent of high quality private health insurance coverage. The number of federal senators and representatives that choose to exclude their staffers from Obamacare shows that many Washington politicians understand the quality of government insurance plans Medicaid and Obamacare represent. The simple fact is, that health insurance is not to be…
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23
Jan
By Bob Weeks

Voice for Liberty Radio: Milton Wolf

In this episode of WichitaLiberty Radio: Dr. Milton Wolf is a candidate for United States Senate from Kansas and will face incumbent Pat Roberts in the August Republican primary election. We spoke by telephone on January 23, 2014. As Wolf is a physician, it should be no surprise that health care was a major topic. Also, he answers the question that's on everyone's mind: Jayhawks, Wildcats, or Shockers? This is podcast episode number 6, released on January 23, 2014. [powerpress] Shownotes Milton Wolf campaign website Pat Roberts campaign website Columns by Milton Wolf at Washington Times Kansas Republican Party and…
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02
Jan
By Bob Weeks

Medicaid found to increase, not decrease, emergency room usage

This is an astonishing finding, and contrary to what the conventional wisdom has told us about health care. For years, it has been the number one talking point of Obamacare supporters. People who are uninsured end up getting costly care from hospitals’ emergency rooms. “Those of us with health insurance are also paying a hidden and growing tax for those without it -- about $1,000 per year that pays for [the uninsureds’] emergency room and charitable care,” said President Obama in 2009. Obamacare, the President told us, would solve that problem by covering the uninsured, thereby driving premiums down. A…
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27
Dec
By Bob Weeks

Exchange data security breaches don’t require notification

The breach of consumer data at Target has brought the issue of data security in focus. Yesterday a senator called for more protection and accountability for consumers and retailers. The following story from Watchdog.org tells us that government does not want to hold itself to the standards it wants the private sector to observe. There has been legislation proposed. Rep. Diane Black [R-TN6] has introduced H.R. 3731: Federal Exchange Data Breach Notification Act of 2013, whose title is "To require an Exchange established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to notify individuals in the case that personal information…
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